Memoirs of a Warrior
by Black Raider
Summary: A week after Tai Lung's defeat, Shifu finds Tai Lung alive...and ten years old, hiding in Chor Gom Prison. When Tai Lung reveals a book of his life, Shifu will finally learn Tai Lung's side of the story. R&R Rated T for later chapters.
1. Chor Gom Prison

Chapter 1- Chor Gom Prison

_Shifu…_

Master Shifu woke up to a voice calling him. At first, he thought it was just his imagination. Then he heard it again.

_Shifu, hear me. Please come. I'm in a prison. Come to me, baba._

Shifu bolted upright in his bed. He looked around. Finally, the voice called a third time.

_SHIFU!!!_

"Alright!" Shifu yelled. "I'll come. I'll be there in a few days!" The voice seemed satisfied, because it shut up, so Shifu slept again.

The next morning, Shifu packed a few things in a bag, grabbed a cloak, and met up with his students in the kitchen. He told them he was leaving for a while.

"Want us to come?" Mantis offered.

"No." Shifu said flatly. "I have to go alone." Shifu bowed to his students, pulled on the cloak and put up the hood, and left.

*****

Shifu knew exactly where to go. After two days of travel, the old master arrived at Chor Gom Prison, the place Tai Lung was imprisoned. Shifu walked thru the broken doors and saw the broken bridge.

"Hello?" he called into the darkness. "Somebody wanted me here?" Shifu pulled down the hood of his cloak and looked around. Then, he heard a creaking sound. Shifu spun around and saw a snow leopard, about ten years old. He had piercing, yet kind, fiery eyes and purple pants. Shifu almost gasped out loud.

It was Tai Lung. But he was younger, smaller. Shifu took a step back, and slipped off the edge of the broken bridge. Shifu started to fall, but then a paw grabbed him and pulled him up.

"Are you alright?" Tai Lung asked. Shifu didn't answer; he was too shocked that Tai Lung was so young, and even more surprised that he had saved his life after trying to kill him twice.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Shifu said after he finally found his voice. "What are you doing here?"

"I don't know." little Tai Lung said, looking quite scared. "I remember a bad man trying to hurt me, and then I went to sleep and woke up here. I need your help." The little snow leopard cub led Shifu to Commander Vachir's old sleeping quarters. There wasn't much there, but it was comfortable. Torches lit up the room quite brightly; a comfy, but small bed was pushed in a corner. A small table served as a nightstand. On the nightstand was a book. Little Tai Lung motioned for Shifu to sit down and grabbed the book. Shifu sat on the bed, but he was wary. He wanted answers, and he wasn't sure if Tai Lung was still evil or not. Tai Lung showed him the book. Shifu read the title and stared at the little cub next to him.

"Who is this story about?" he finally asked. "It says, _Memoirs of a Warrior_."

"It's about me." Tai Lung said. Shifu's eyes opened wide and he stared at the book. "Will you read it? I need answers."

"I do, too." Shifu said.

"So you will?" Tai Lung asked hopefully. Shifu sighed and nodded. Tai Lung smiled and his face brightened with a new light. He snuggled into his bed and watched his adoptive father as Shifu opened the book and started to read.

_The first chapter of the memoir is coming soon. Bear with me. I'm working on two stories at the same time. Read & Review! I may need encouragement with this one._


	2. First Years

Chapter 2- First Years

My life was messed up ever since the very beginning. My parents left me at the Jade Palace in the Valley of Peace. I only have one, vivid memory of them. My father's fiery eyes, looking at me proudly, and my mother's smiling face. But something happened. I can remember that one night, I went to sleep, and then I woke up in the arms of a small creature with huge ears. It wasn't until a few weeks later that I learned who he was. Master Shifu, student of Grand Master Oogway, and guardian of the Valley of Peace.

My first year at the Jade Palace was hard to get used to. But Shifu was a very good father, and I enjoyed playing with my grandfather Oogway. My most memorable moment was the time Shifu was feeding me, and I pulled off his whiskers on one side of his face. Before I went to Chor Gom Prison, I always laughed at that moment. I was also surprised by how Shifu didn't yell too loudly.

Another good moment was when I snuck out of my crib and ventured through the palace in the dark. I was only three years old. Anyway, I was curious; I wanted to explore my home. I wandered to the kitchen, but found it locked. The bunkhouse was pretty much empty except for Oogway and Shifu's room. I was tempted to curl up next to my dad and sleep with him, but something moved me on. So I kept walking around until my feet led me to a large room. It took a long time to push open the doors, but I got it done and walked in. I couldn't stop staring happily at all the cool weapons and armor. There was even a pale purple fan, though it wasn't until later I found out why it was there. I walked all through the place, staring with wonder at all the cool weapons. I stopped at a little glowing pool and stared at my reflection. I saw something shine, and I craned my neck back to look up at a golden dragon on the ceiling. A ruby red tube with green edges was in the dragon's mouth.

I was wondering what the tube had in it when I heard a loud _BANG!_ I whipped around and found the large double doors shut tight. I ran over and tried to pull open the doors, but pushing the door open was one thing. Pulling it open was another for me. After a moment, I gave up. I ran to the other end of the room and saw one wall that only had columns. I could see the outside, so I ran to the edge. But I backed up quick when I saw the side of the mountain. I backed up to the pool again, trembling. I noticed shadows on the walls, and they scared me. I wanted to be back in my bed, and I was wishing I hadn't left.

"Baba." I whispered. "Baba, I'm scared." It was true. I was terrified. But I was only three, and the shadows were moving. Plus, I couldn't stand sitting there all night.

Then, I heard the doors open, and I ran and hid behind a pillar. I didn't know who came in, and I didn't want to know. I heard small footsteps, and I saw a small figure walking around, searching for something. I wanted to stop him; I thought he was a thief. So I gathered up my courage and ran towards him, growling. I leaped onto his head and held on with my claws, but the little stranger was strong, and he grabbed me and threw me aside. He came at me with a knife in his hand, but stopped right in front of me. I took the opportunity to run to the pool. The stranger sheathed his knife and followed. He ran over and crouched down.

"Tai Lung?" he asked. I looked up and saw Shifu's worried face. I hugged him tightly, and he held me close. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just curious." I said. Shifu laughed.

"Curiosity killed the cat, you know." He told me. I got scared, but Shifu explained that curiosity isn't always good. Then Shifu took me to bed, and stayed in my room all night. Something told me he just wanted me safe, despite the fact he said he was making sure I didn't sneak out again. After that night, Shifu showed me around so I could get used the palace. He took me to the room I hid in last.

"This is the Sacred Hall of Warriors." Shifu explained to me. "This is where all the greatest warriors are remembered." Shifu then led me to each artifact and told the story behind it. I kept getting more and more fascinated. I learned what the fan was for at last.

"This fan belonged to Lady Wind Song." Shifu explained. "She used it to fight bandits attacking her village. When she died, her fan was given to us for safekeeping."

When Shifu showed me the Golden Spear, it was instantly my favorite weapon.

"The Golden Spear is said to detect any evil within a person." Shifu told me. "Anyone unworthy of holding it shall be burned. Those who are worthy may wield it."

"Can I try?" I asked, reaching for the spear. Shifu held me back.

"I wouldn't." he said, smiling. "Besides, I have two more things to show you." He led me to the pool. "This is the Moon Pool, said to have an answer for any question. Behind that is the Thousand Scrolls of Kung Fu, written by Master Oogway himself." I looked up at the golden dragon on the ceiling. Shifu followed my gaze. "_That _is the Dragon Scroll. When it is time to choose the Dragon Warrior, they will receive the scroll and gain limitless power."

"Could _I _be the Dragon Warrior?" I asked him.

To this day, I regret asking that very question. Maybe if I had kept my big mouth shut, Shifu wouldn't have said, "Yes, you _could _if that was your destiny." That single line made me dream of being the Dragon Warrior. It was those words, "Limitless power", and "Your destiny" that made me crave that power. I thought Shifu was the greatest father I could ask for at the time, and I wanted to protect him. It wasn't until many years later that I realized I went against my own wishes.

*****

Shifu stopped reading when Tai Lung touched him gently. He stared at the cub.

"Maybe we should get to sleep." He said quietly. "That way you can read more tomorrow."

"Alright." Shifu sighed. Tai Lung handed him a broken piece of armor.

"I used it for a bookmark." He explained when Shifu gave him a weird look. Shifu suddenly remembered what Tai Lung had done to escape the prison, and marked his place. Tai Lung set the book on the table, got up, and pulled out a tiny cot.

"I'll sleep here." He offered. Shifu shook his head and told Tai Lung he would. Tai Lung nodded and curled up in his own bed. Before Shifu even blew out the candle, the cub was out like a light. Shifu stayed awake for a little while. He was so confused, and he had so many questions. The most important one was why was Tai Lung like this? Shifu glanced over at the memoir on the table. He was determined to finish the book and find answers, not matter how long it took.

_I know it's a bit short, but I'm having a bit of writer's block and I'm eager to finish this. I'll update soon! Read & Review!_


	3. A Journey Thru Time

_This chapter was mostly written to meet the demands of Miss __Priestess Mayumi. Hope you enjoy!_

Chapter 3- A Journey thru Time

The next morning, Shifu woke up to find Tai Lung gone from his bed. When he walked out of the room, Shifu saw the cub next to a small fire. Shifu sighed, still a bit shaken from last night's events. He walked up and sat down next to the cub.

"Morning." He mumbled.

"Good morning, Shifu." Tai Lung said. He seemed to be nervous, like he didn't know what to call the master. Shifu shook it off and decided he needed to know more about this situation.

"So how did you get here?" Shifu asked.

"I really don't know." Tai Lung said. "I remember a bad man."

"He was trying to hurt you." Shifu recalled. "You fell asleep, and woke up here."

"Actually, I ran away, and I fell asleep from exhaustion." Tai Lung corrected. "I didn't know where I was when I fell asleep."

"How much of your life do you remember?" Shifu asked next.

"I remember everything you read." Tai Lung explained. "But, when you read the book, could you read it aloud to me?"

"Why?"

"Well, I want to know what happened in my life _after _ten years old." Shifu stared at Tai Lung, realizing for the first time that Po must've done something wrong when he performed the Wuxi Finger Hold.

_Oh gods in Heaven! _Shifu thought. He had forgotten about his students; what would they say when they saw this? The memoir had to take at least five days to finish. On the other hand, they didn't know where he was. Shifu decided that if he was gone for more than a week, he'd send a letter to his students so they didn't worry.

"Shifu?" Tai Lung's voice brought Shifu out of his thoughts. He looked at his former student and saw him holding a plate out to him. On the plate was some bread that looked like it had been burned for a few minutes.

"What's this?" Shifu asked. Tai Lung shrugged.

"I'm not sure; I was messing around with the bread over the fire, and it turned brown. I tried it, and it tasted pretty good."

"Burned bread?" Shifu asked. Tai Lung shrugged again, so Shifu tried it. It was pretty good, but dry. Once they were both done with breakfast, Tai Lung brought out the book and they sat on Tai Lung's bed. Shifu opened up to the armor bookmark and started to read.

*****

My life didn't get really interesting until I was five, apart from my birthdays, which Oogway and Shifu made pleasurable for me. I didn't get very many gifts, but the gifts I did get were fun to play with, even if they were only books I would read later in my life. My favorite gift was a little toy Chinese dragon. It was just a stuffed animal, but it was pure gold, with emerald green eyes and a life-like smile. I immediately favored it, naming it Xiaoqing. It was supposed to be the name of a legendary green snake, but I don't know the full legend.

Shifu had showed me the training hall many times because I wouldn't stop begging him. After a few days, he showed me the hall anytime I asked. Usually, I would at least be polite and make sure he wasn't busy. But nine out of ten times, Shifu was only training. He's a kung fu master, and he's still training. I couldn't believe it. I didn't learn until I was ten that practice made perfect.

One day, I went to Shifu so he could show me the hall again. I found him meditating under the Sacred Peach Tree. I didn't want to disturb him, so I took Xiaoqing with me as I journeyed to the hall alone. I knew Shifu would be mad, but I was too eager to wait. I loved every single thing in the hall, even the Adversary. I placed Xiaoqing down and leaned him up against a pillar. I crouched down and started toward the Adversary dummy.

"Watch this Xiaoqing!" I said. "I'll be the greatest warrior in the world!" I ran up to the Adversary and gave it a swipe with my paw. The dummy bent back, but came back to me. I jumped up and gave it a good kick in the right spot. The punching bag flew backwards, hit the wall, and bounced back about five feet. I smiled back at my little dragon, but my smile faded when I saw Shifu. I thought I was in so much trouble, seeing that Shifu would be worried that I would get hurt. But Shifu was staring at me incredulously. He came to my side and smiled, looking down at me proudly. I smiled too, remembering my real father's proud face. I rubbed my head under Shifu's chin, purring. I knew I wasn't in trouble anymore. Shifu ruffled the fur on my head.

"Would you like to learn kung fu?" Shifu asked me.

"Oh yes please!" I begged. "I want to be the best!"

"It'll be hard." Shifu warned. But I didn't care.

"I want to be the best, no matter what." I insisted.

The next day, I started my training. Both Shifu and Oogway came to teach me. Shifu was no longer just my father, but also my master and teacher. In a way, I considered him more of my master than father. After all, he wasn't my father by blood. That didn't mean I didn't still love him like he was.

When I turned seven, I yet again did something I regretted later in my life. Shifu was meditating with me, showing me how to do it so I was at peace in my mind. I broke out for a minute.

"Something wrong?" Shifu asked me, breaking out of his focus.

"I was just thinking." I replied.

"You want to talk about it?"

I sighed, and came out with it. "I was just wondering why I don't have any brothers or sisters. Or why there aren't any other students of kung fu around."

"Well, as far as I know, you were an only child." Shifu explained. "And we can always get new students if you wish to have a friend or companion."

"Xiaoqing is my friend." I said.

"All right." Shifu said. "That's okay. But if you want another student around, we can arrange that." I thought about that for a moment before I figured out what I _really _wanted.

"Well, I guess so." I said. "But what I _really _want are some parents."

"I'm your father, aren't I?" Shifu asked, puzzled. "And Oogway is like a grandfather to you, right?"

"Yes!" I said quickly, realizing what I just said. "You _are _great parents. But I just meant that I want a mom." Shifu looked sad.

"You _did _have a mom." He said.

"Really?" I asked. "Where is she?"

"That's just it." Shifu said. "Nobody knows. As far as I or Oogway knows, you are the last person of your village."

"My village?"

"Yes. You see, Oogway and I believe that you came from a village in the mountains. A few days before you came to the palace, we heard news that an evil dictator invaded the village and burned it down. Everyone says that no one survived." Shifu patted my shoulder. "But you being alive seem to have gone against that."

"Do you think my parents are alive?" I asked hopefully.

"I don't know, Tai Lung." Shifu said. "I really don't know." It broke my heart, and I think it broke Shifu's heart to see my heart break.

That night, I couldn't stop having dreams about my parents. It was always the same thing: I would be in a small room that only had a small crib in it. A very young snow leopard cub smiled happily in the crib. I knew at once it was me. Two adult snow leopards stood around the crib, and I recognized them as my parents. My mother couldn't stop smiling down at me. My father was smiling proudly, and I felt like I had to make him proud. That was my other reason for being the best of the best; I wanted to make my parents, Shifu, and even Master Oogway all proud of me.

I had the same dreams for a week's worth of nights when I finally decided that I absolutely _had _to know what happened to my parents. So one day, I waited until Shifu and Oogway were meditating and snuck out of the palace. I had enough kung fu training so that the servants never saw me leave. The village was pretty busy. I didn't know where to start, so I chose the closest restaurant, thinking the owner must've had many visitors. I walked up to a young goose behind the counter.

"Hi, my name's Tai Lung." I said politely.

"Good afternoon sir." The goose said. "How can I help you?"

"I need information." The goose seemed surprised, but invited me inside. Once I was settled, the goose started cooking.

"Go ahead and ask." He said. "I can multi-task." I smiled and started.

"Well, I live in the Jade Palace. But I don't know anything about my parents. They left me in Master Shifu and Master Oogway's care. I was wondering if you knew anything about that."

"Well, I can't say I've heard of any snow leopards nearby." The goose said. My hopes started to fall, but they rose again when the goose said, "But I believe I remember something that happened about seven years ago. These two snow leopards were wondering how to get to the palace. They had a little cub with them."

"Did they say where they were going?" I asked eagerly.

"No, I'm afraid not." The goose said. "But the poor things; they looked so battered and hurt. I had offered to let them stay here, you know. But they insisted that I would only get killed. Does this help you at all?"

"Yes, thank you." I said, bowing.

"If you need to know more, feel free to drop by anytime." The goose insisted. "I'm not usually busy. By the way, I'm Mr. Ping."

"Well, thanks Mr. Ping." I said as I left. When I got outside, I realized how late it was, so I ran to the palace. But when I got to the steps, two boars attacked me. I fought back, but I didn't have enough training, because the boars caught me.

"Well now, Sǐ Wáng would love to see this." One said.

"Yeah, what do you think he'll do to _this _one?" asked the boar holding me down.

"Well, there's always that dragon to feed!" said the first. I was fluently surprised that they had a dragon, but scared that I was about to be fed by it. Suddenly, a little white and brown streak raced by, tackling the boar that had me into the bushes. The other reached for me, but the streak kicked that one far away. My rescuer looked at me, and I saw it was Shifu. He grabbed my hand and together we raced up the steps to the palace. We didn't stop until we reached my room. We panted in the dark for a minute before Shifu held me close, obviously scared.

"What were you _thinking_?" he asked me.

"I just wanted to find my parents." I sniffled, fighting the urge to cry. Shifu let go of me and stared. Then he sighed.

"Let me and Oogway find your parents." He said. "You can't leave the palace without me, understand?" I nodded understandably. Shifu and I went to bed then. The next morning, Shifu sent out a word for anyone who had survived or anyone who had witnessed the attack on my village. I swore I'd find my parents someday. I explained to Shifu what the boars said, and he promised that it would be next on our list. I was satisfied.

*****

Shifu glanced over at Tai Lung.

"Perhaps we should take a break?" the cub suggested. Shifu nodded, and Tai Lung walked out of the room. Shifu sighed, gathering his thoughts.

He could remember that night, how terrified he was that something had happened to Tai Lung. Shifu was tempted to continue reading, but it didn't seem fair. Shifu stared sadly at the book in his hands as he marked his place. He and Tai Lung had shared a special father/son bond, and Shifu was desperate to find out what had caused it to collapse. Shifu still had Tai Lung's little dragon, hidden in his room. Sometimes, Shifu would take out little Xiaoqing and hold him close, remembering the little cub he called his son.

And now, here he was.

_I thought the toast thing was pretty funny. I think they had bread in ancient China, but I'm not too sure. Anyway, read & review, and I'll update soon._


	4. Found, Then Lost Forever

_This chapter is going to be a bit long, just a little warning._

Chapter 4- Found, then Lost Forever

While Shifu waited for Tai Lung, he meditated. Unfortunately, he couldn't stay focused for long. Because soon after he got started, he heard a loud _CRASH! _Shifu jumped and ran out. But he didn't see Tai Lung anywhere.

"Hello?" Shifu called. At first, there wasn't a response. Then, he heard someone cry out for help. Shifu rushed to the edge of the broken bridge and saw Tai Lung on a ledge a few meters below.

"What in gods' name are you doing down there?" Shifu asked.

"I tripped and fell." Tai Lung said innocently.

"How did you trip?"

"I was just trying to practice kung fu!" Tai Lung insisted. "Just because I don't live at the Jade Palace doesn't mean I should slack off!"

_Like father like son. _Shifu thought. "Just hold on, I'll find a chain or something." Shifu ran to a door and threw it open. A very long ladder spilled out and Shifu dragged it over to the edge. His face paled when he saw Tai Lung dangling off the edge of the ledge he was on. Shifu hammered a peg into the ground, hooked the ladder on, and pushed the ladder over the edge. To his horror, Shifu heard claws against stone, and then Tai Lung's yell for help. Shifu looked over the edge and saw Tai Lung fall down and land hard on the little stone island he used to be imprisoned on. Shifu cursed and half fell, half slid down the ladder down to him. When he was at the bottom of the extremely long ladder, Shifu realized that Vachir must've used the ladder before he and his men made the bridges. Shifu saw Tai Lung lying limp on the ground and rushed over.

"Tai Lung?" Shifu shook the cub. "Are you alright?" But Tai Lung wouldn't respond. Surprisingly, Shifu actually felt sorry. He didn't expect that. He chuckled weakly. "Hey, wake up. We have a memoir to read." When Tai Lung still didn't answer, Shifu picked him up and carried him up the ladder, albeit with difficulty. Shifu laid the snow leopard on his bed. Shifu picked up the book.

"Hey, why don't we continue, huh?" Shifu asked. Tai Lung lay still, but Shifu started reading.

*****

When I turned twelve, I finally found my parents. I'd like to say I fought bravely, cutting down all that opposed me, and saving my parents heroically. Truth is I completely and totally blew it.

You know what; let me tell you the full story.

One day, Shifu came to me during training, looking very happy.

"Tai Lung, I have _great _news." He said as I jumped off the Fiery Field of Death. "A good friend of mine got my notice and said he knows about two snow leopards that survived the attack."

"Was it my parents?" I asked.

"I'm not sure, but I'm leaving now to find out." Shifu replied. "My friend said that he knows where they are."

"Can I come?" I begged. "I want to see them."

"Don't worry, you will." Shifu promised. "I'm going to bring them here." I got excited then, and Shifu left to get them. For a few days, I trained hard so I was ready to show my parents what I had been doing. When I was done with training, I'd take Xiaoqing out to the front gates and wait for Shifu to come with my parents. I'd wait there until Oogway came to take me to bed. But every night, I'd be so excited I'd always dream of my parents, looking at me proudly as I showed them what I did.

But after a full week of the same routine, I started to get worried. I still trained vigorously, but I was always straining my ears for the sound of the doors opening. I had started to study the Thousand Scrolls of Kung Fu when I was eight. The first hundred of them I learned easily. Right now, I'm on 555. I'm halfway there.

One day, while I was with Xiaoqing at the gates, Oogway came to me once more to take me to bed.

"Master Oogway?" I asked as we walked to the bunkhouse. "How far away does Shifu's friend live?"

"He only lives a few miles away from your old village." Oogway told me. "A three days' walk from here."

I did some quick math, adding up travel time and maybe two days of visiting and finding my parents' hideout. I calculated about eight days. It had been three weeks since Shifu left. I got _really _worried when another month went by and he wasn't back. He never even sent a letter. Absolutely nothing. After one more day of no Shifu, I confronted Oogway after training.

"Master, I ask permission to leave the palace and find Shifu." I told the old tortoise. "I'm getting worried."

"Tai Lung, do you have _any _idea how dangerous that is?" Oogway scolded. "It would be too life-threatening….without a weapon." I stared at the master, and he smiled at me. "Come." I followed Oogway to the Sacred Hall of Warriors. "You may use any of these weapons to retrieve your master and parents." I looked around and remembered my favorite weapon.

"May I use the Golden Spear?" I asked. Oogway looked at me worriedly, then-

*****

Shifu stopped reading and looked at Tai Lung, who was still out cold. Shifu sighed, about to give up.

"Hey." The cub murmured. Shifu's head snapped up and he watched as Tai Lung awoke.

"Don't stop."

"You're alive?" Shifu asked.

"Yeah, but don't ask me how." Tai Lung said. "Can you get me some food? I'm hungry." Shifu nodded and found some bread on a table. He split it between him and Tai Lung and continued to read.

*****

-gestured over to the spear. I remembered what Shifu told me, but I wasn't afraid. I reached out and grabbed the spear, bracing myself for a burn. But I waited for several minutes before Oogway confirmed that the spear had deemed me worthy.

"Good luck." He told me.

"Thanks. I think I'll need it." I said as I left.

Oogway was right; he had given me a map to Shifu's friend's house, and after exactly three days of travel, including stopping to rest and eat, I had arrived at a nice little house that was overlooked by a tall range of mountains. I had to weave my way thru some tall grasses and a vegetable garden just to get to the door. Something about the wide variety of food told me these people were great farmers, and I couldn't help but wonder it the Jade Palace got its food from them. I approached the door and knocked a few times. But after every knock, deep silence followed. It became so quiet I could hear the creek flow about a quarter mile away.

"Hello?" I called, looking thru the window. "Is anybody home? My name is Tai Lung. I'm looking for Master Shifu." There were footsteps, and the door opened to reveal a very scared cheetah.

"Can I help you, kind sir?" he asked. I was a bit confused, but shrugged it off.

"I was just wondering if Master Shifu was here. He's my master and father."

The cheetah brightened up immediately. "So _you're _Tai Lung!" He ran forward and shook my hand. "An honor to finally meet you! Please, come in!" The cheetah called inside his house. "Lin darling! We have a guest! It's Shifu's son!" A woman's voice called back, "Oh! Well, let him in, I'll make some dinner!" The cheetah gestured me in and I followed him thru the house to the table. Well, it wasn't much of a house. Some bed mats were rolled up in a corner, a table with five chairs was at one end, a bucket with dishes in it was beside it, and a small fireplace was near the bed mats on the other side of the room. A small fire was burning in it. I set the Golden Spear leaning against the wall.

The cheetah led me to the table and we sat down.

"Well, it truly is a pleasure for you to come." The cheetah said as his wife cooked. "Please allow me to introduce myself. I am Zhan shi. This is my wife, Lin." The woman at the fireplace nodded and smiled. Then I noticed two cubs, each about five years old, standing timidly by the bed mats. "And these two are Yun and Mei, my twin daughters." Zhan shi introduced. The twins stepped up and said a shy, "Hello" at the same time.

"What are you doing here?" Mei asked.

"I'm looking for Shifu." I said. "He's been gone for a long time now, and he said he was coming here." Immediately, Zhan shi and his family's faces fell. Zhan shi cleared his throat.

"Uh, Tai Lung, I'm afraid you may be too late." He told me. "You see, Shifu came here-"

"Because you knew something about my parents." I said.

"Precisely." Zhan shi said. "Well, Shifu came in the middle of the night. The next morning, I told him that a very evil leopard known as Sǐ Wáng was the one who attacked your village. He imprisoned a lot of snow leopards. I used to work for him, but he released me after he took the snow leopards captive. I told Shifu where Sǐ Wáng's place was, but I warned him that if he went in, he'd _never _come out."

"What's so bad about the place?" I asked. "It can't be _that _bad."

"It is." Lin said as she set down some dumplings. "Zhan shi's job at the palace was to feed Daiyu."

"Who's that?" I asked as I ate.

"She's a large Chinese dragon." Zhan shi described. "As black as obsidian." The cheetah shivered. "She's so large and dangerous. But she really is quite nice when she warms up to you. But she absolutely _hates _Sǐ Wáng."

"So what happened to Shifu?" I asked worriedly.

"Well, being as stubborn as he is, he ignored my warning and left to the Sǐ Wáng's palace. He lives just thirty miles from here, up in those mountains. Anyway, Shifu left to go to the palace. He intended to save your parents and the other snow leopards. But he never came back." Zhan shi sighed. "At the end of every month, I take half of my harvest to Sǐ Wáng. It's our little deal: I give him food, he lets my stay free. About a week ago, I went to Sǐ Wáng's palace to take him the food. While I was there, we had a little conversation. See, after giving him food for so many years, we sort of became friends. Sǐ Wáng told me about Shifu attacking the palace and how Sǐ Wáng had captured him. Right now, Shifu is being held in the dungeon of Sǐ Wáng's palace."

I groaned and hit myself in the head. "Could this get any worse?!"

"In a word: yes." Yun said.

"Excuse me?" I asked.

"Well, Sǐ Wáng told me Shifu would become the next meal to the dragon." Zhan shi said. "I'm so sorry." I stared at the wood on the table, shocked. Finally, I stood up, grabbed the Golden Spear, and started out the door.

"Where are you going?" Lin asked.

"I'm going to find Shifu." I said.

"That's suicidal!" Zhan shi cried. "If you think Shifu couldn't beat Sǐ Wáng, what on earth makes you think _you _can?"

"I can do it." I assured. "I'll be back as soon as possible."

"But-" I didn't stay long enough for Zhan shi to finish his sentence, because I was gone. Yun and Mei raced to me.

"You two aren't coming." I said. But all they did was hand me some sort of strip of leather with a sheath.

"This is for your spear." Yun said.

"Then you can run faster to get to Master Shifu." Mei added. I thanked them and put it on. Turns out the Golden Spear fit perfectly. The twins hugged me.

"Stay safe." Yun told me.

"Make sure you bring back Shifu." Mei said. I smiled, turned, and ran on all fours off to the mountains.

*****

"Shifu."

Shifu looked up from the book to look at Tai Lung. "Yes?"

"What happened that made you get captured?" he asked.

"Well, I managed to get inside the palace and find your parents, but Sǐ Wáng caught me. He was very skilled, but dishonorable. He almost killed me, but he figured I might as well be a meal for that dragon."

"So, how did you live?"

"Well, let's read on and find out, shall we?"

*****

By the time I got to the palace in the mountains, it was getting dark. But my eyesight helped a lot. I weaved thru the guards without killing any of them. I figured it be the most honorable thing to do. Besides, I was here to save Shifu and my parents. I managed to find some dungeon guards and followed them to the throne room. There, on his throne, was Sǐ Wáng himself. He was a dark grey wolf wearing black robes. He was sitting lazily on a throne, flipping a knife around. The guards bowed to him, and I hid just outside the door.

"Sǐ Wáng." One said. "The dragon is getting restless. When are we supposed to attack Master Oogway?"

"Oh shut up." Sǐ Wáng told him. "The dragon is obviously not happy with what we fed it."

"Sir, we offered it the snow leopards from the village you took over and the rat that attacked." The second soldier said. "Is that not enough?"

"The rat is a red panda." Sǐ Wáng corrected. "His name is Shifu." My heart leaped to my throat. "Look, just tell the chefs to make a dish for the beast." The guards bowed and left. I followed silently. But then, I knocked over a stand of armor, and the guards whipped around to see what happened. I kicked one guard into another, knocking them out cold. Then I proceeded to the kitchen. When I walked in, a lioness whipped around to me, a sharp knife in her hand. She was dressed in a simple brown dress and looked about eleven years old.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Uh, Sǐ Wáng wants the chefs to make a meal for the dragon." I said. The lioness rolled her eyes and gave the order. A moment later, a large bowl was shoved into my hands. "Uh, where exactly _is _the dragon?" The lioness rolled her eyes again and took me outside the kitchen. She turned to me, and her eyes widened.

"You have the Golden Spear." She said. I groaned. I had forgotten the spear was on my back. I grabbed the lioness' arm and pulled her close.

"Listen to me." I said. "My name is Tai Lung. My parents and my master are here and I intend to rescue them. You must take me to the dragon." The lioness stared at me, and then smiled.

"Alright, but only if I come too." She said.

"What?" I said.

"Look, I've worked here my entire life." The lioness said. "I've been praying every night as hard as I could to the gods for an angel, _anybody_, to set me free." The lioness stared into my eyes. "_You're _my angel." I stared at her for a long time before I realized she was right. So I agreed, putting the bowl of food down. The lioness led me down to a small door. Before she opened it, she turned to me, her dark brown eyes sparkling. "By the way, I'm Mei." I think that's the moment I started to like her. Mei opened to door and led me inside, closing the door quietly behind us. I drew the Golden Spear and prepared myself as I stood in a large cave.

"Hey dragon!" Mei called. "Daiyu! You have a visitor!" From inside the cave, loud footsteps sounded, coming towards us. And emerging from the darkness came Daiyu the dragon. Zhan shi was right; the dragon was pitch-black, like the night sky. Daiyu's eyes were such a dark green that I could hardly see them. She was about three times the size of an elephant, and was no doubt quite young, maybe a ten-year-old to me. Daiyu stared at me with a cold stare.

"You are not Zhan shi." She said. "Who are you?"

"My name is Tai Lung." I told to dragon. "My master and parents are here, and Sǐ Wáng says he fed them to you."

"Bah!" Daiyu retorted, making me and Mei jump. "_Fed _them to _me_?"

"So you didn't eat them?" I asked.

"Oh please!" Daiyu scoffed. "Why does that stupid wolf think I eat meat? Ugh!" Daiyu reached up to a ledge above her and held out her fist to me. When she opened it, I saw Shifu lying unconscious in her paw. I rushed up to him and set him down on the floor. Daiyu reached back up again, searching the ledge.

"Master?" I said, trying to wake up Shifu. He stirred, then opened his eyes and sat up. He stared at me incredulously.

"Tai Lung?" he said. "What the devil are you doing here?"

"What does it look like?" I said sarcastically. "I'm saving you. Did you find my parents?" Shifu smiled.

"There they are." He said, pointing to Daiyu's open paw. On her paw were two snow leopards. I knew at once they were my parents. Shifu stood and weakly led me to them. "Tai Lung, these are your parents, Zhan and Yun." I stared at my parents for a moment before I remembered what Shifu told me about respecting my elders, and I bowed. Then, I felt their arms around me, and I relaxed and hugged them back. I stole a glance at Shifu and Mei, who was supporting Shifu on her arm, both smiling broadly.

"Look at you!" my dad said, pulling away to look at me. "You've grown to be a fine young warrior!"

"Thanks." I said timidly. "I've been studying the Thousand Scrolls of Kung Fu."

"You have?" my mom asked.

"Twelve years old, and he's already more than halfway done." Shifu said. I smiled.

"Um, excuse me?" Mei said. We all turned to her. "I really hate to break up the love fest here, but if we don't leave soon, Sǐ Wáng's going to send his guards and then we'll all be in trouble."

"I agree, but how?" my dad asked.

"There's an opening up there." Daiyu said, pointing to the ceiling. "You can squeeze thru there."

"What about you?" I asked. "If you stay, Sǐ Wáng's just going to use you as a weapon. Do you really want that?"

"No, Tai Lung, I don't." Daiyu said sadly. "But I do not have a choice; destiny has decided my fate."

"Your destiny is not to be a weapon for some crazy old lunatic!" my mother exclaimed. Daiyu sighed.

"How am I supposed to get out?"

"Just fly up there with us on your back and smash thru the wall." My dad told her. "It's that simple."

"And the guards?" Mei asked.

"I can fly faster than they can shoot." Daiyu assured her.

"So you'll come?" I asked. Daiyu smiled and nodded. She crouched down and we all hopped on. Shifu was in front, then me, Mei, my mom, and my dad. Daiyu must've been magic; she had no wings, but she flew with ease up to the top and smashed thru a small hole at the top. I heard an alarm bell ring and urged Daiyu on. She sped up, but archers fired rapidly at us. Daiyu tried to dodge the arrows, but she slammed into the side of the mountain, jerking Shifu off. I watched in horror as he fell and hit a pathway below. Daiyu continued to fly.

"Daiyu!" I yelled over the whistling winds that hit my face. "Turn around! We have to go back for him!"

"It's too dangerous!" Daiyu called back.

"Just do it!" I shouted, readying the Golden Spear. Daiyu sighed, but did a sharp U-turn and darted back to Shifu, who was desperately trying to fight off a soldier attacking him with a sword. But as we got closer, I realized two things:

1. The archers had stopped firing at us

2. The soldier attacking Shifu was Sǐ Wáng

As we got closer, I leaped off of Daiyu and parried a final blow with the spear.

"So, the warrior returns." Sǐ Wáng said. "I knew you couldn't help but save him." Sǐ Wáng attacked with a lot of skill and brute force. I did great for a while, but then I made the mistake of turned my head to see if Shifu was alright, and Sǐ Wáng took his chance. He slashed his sword, cutting my chest. I cried out and fell back, dropping the spear. It rolled away out of my reach. Sǐ Wáng came towards me, his sword rose for a death blow to my head. He swung down, and I braced myself. But all that happened was a cry of pain, and then something fell next to me, dead. I was horrified to see my father's bloody corpse next to me. I stared at Sǐ Wáng, anger, hatred, and murder glowing in my eyes.

I didn't need the spear. I was going to tear the bloody wolf apart with my bare hands.

I lunged, knocking away Sǐ Wáng's sword and tackling him. We fought viciously. But to be truthful, I fought dishonorably. I was fighting like a wild animal, using my claws to tear Sǐ Wáng's flesh. After a punch to the chest, Sǐ Wáng fell. I picked up his sword and raised it up. I intended to stab him until his blood was flowing down the mountain. But when I brought my sword down, the Golden Spear stopped me. I looked over and saw Shifu holding the spear, obviously deemed worthy to wield it.

"Remember who you are." He told me. "And who you are not; you are _not _a murderer." I sighed, tossing the sword over the mountain. Shifu and I walked back over to Daiyu, who was hovering next to the pathway, waiting for us. I picked up my father's body, determined to not leave him.

The next moment was a blur. I heard a roar, a warning cry, a flash of metal, a scream of pain. Next thing I knew, my mother's corpse fell beside me. I dropped my dad as I was kicked to the ground, knocking the wind out of me. I saw Sǐ Wáng raising his sword to kill me, and this time Shifu stood protectively in front of me.

_No! _I thought _I can't lose him too! _I braced my self for Shifu's death as well. Sǐ Wáng swung down his sword….

….and it bounced off an invisible shield Shifu and I looked up to see a king cheetah wearing rough-looking blue pants (A/N: I don't know if they had jeans in ancient China.) and a jade green, short-sleeved shirt. She was hovering a foot off the ground.

"Who dares to stop my victory?!" Sǐ Wáng roared.

"The snow leopards time for death has come and gone." The king cheetah said. Her voice was low and smooth. It was also wise. "But these two warriors' times have not yet come." Sǐ Wáng swung his sword, but the blade just bounced off of the king cheetah's body. She growled. "Your punishment is now death!" Sǐ Wáng screamed and he disintegrated to ashes, which blew away in the wind. The king cheetah turned to me and Shifu.

"Who are you?" Shifu asked.

"I control the fate of all." The king cheetah said. "You fight the battles, and I decide the outcome. You make the decisions, and I create the consequences. I decide who is to live and who is to die. I am Destiny." I stared at her for a long time before I felt anger.

"Why did you decide that my parents were to die now?" I said, choking back tears.

"Tai Lung." Destiny said sadly. "I had half a mind to not do it. So I took the matter to the Eight Immortals. They knew that your parents were weak; they wouldn't have made it to the Jade Palace in time to save them. But at the same time, they didn't want their deaths to be meaningless. _That _is why I decided that they should die saving the life of their only child."

"So what's supposed to happen to them?" I demanded.

"I will personally escort their souls to Heaven." Destiny said, smiling. "I'll make sure they get a well-deserved place." I was reluctant, and Shifu put a hand on my shoulder. He knew I was upset. I nodded to Destiny. She created a fire ball in her hands and set my parent's bodies on fire. But when the flames licked my body, I didn't burn or feel any heat.

"Raise these souls to Heaven." Destiny said. The fires disappeared, and my parents' bodies were gone, up in Heaven. Destiny crouched down to me and placed a hand on my bloody chest. Instantly, the wound was gone. My shoulders trembled. I felt Mei's arms around me, and Shifu's hand grasping my shoulder. Finally, I let out all my tears. Daiyu raised her head and roared mournfully to the sky.

*****

Shifu stopped reading and wiped a tear from his eye. Tai Lung was curled up in a ball on his bed.

"Please tell me my parents aren't really dead." He told Shifu. The master said nothing, and Tai Lung turned away from him, crying silently to the wall.

_I know, it's sad. But I thought it would be nice to know Tai Lung's parents were doing something honorable when they died. Read and Review and try not to cry too much._


	5. Battles and Love

Chapter Five- Battles and Love

Shifu and Tai Lung didn't return to the memoir for at least a week. Tai Lung took his parents' death really hard. When Tai Lung decided he was finally ready to continue, Shifu heard something outside. He looked out the door and almost cursed.

"What is it?" Tai Lung asked. Shifu rushed over and ushered the cub into his room.

"Stay there." Shifu ordered. He went back to the door and waited as Zeng crash-landed at his feet.

"Master Shifu." He said. "Po asked me to send this to you." The messenger handed Shifu a scroll. Shifu read it silently, and then handed it back to Zeng.

"Tell my students it'll take a little longer, but I will be coming home." Shifu said. "And if Po is still worried, tell him that the longest it will take is about a week." Zeng nodded and flew off. Tai Lung came out of his room.

"Why was Zeng here?" he asked. "What students?"

"Uh, well, it's a little hard to explain." Shifu said. "If we continued to read the memoir, it might make things more clear." Tai Lung agreed. Shifu got the book and Tai Lung made a fire. Together, they sat down next to the flames and Shifu started to read.

*****

After I had gathered myself, I stood up wearily.

"Let's go home." Shifu said. He sounded sad still. "We have a lot to tell Oogway." Destiny followed me, Mei, and Shifu as we climbed onto Daiyu. With how fast Daiyu could fly, we got to the palace in about an hour. Master Oogway was waiting at the gate. He didn't seem too surprised to see us on Daiyu.

"Ah, Tai Lung!" he said happily. "I see you've succeeded, and you've brought some friend with you."

"Uh, yes." I said wearily. "This is Mei. She was a slave to Sǐ Wáng. And this is Daiyu and Destiny."

"No need for introductions." Destiny said. "Oogway and I have met before."

"Yes, and it was quite an interesting meet." Oogway chuckled. "Now, where are your parents?" I snarled to the ground. Oogway's smile disappeared and he looked at Shifu.

"Tai Lung, I will talk to Oogway." Shifu told me. "Will you show Daiyu and Mei around?"

"Yes master." I said. Destiny obviously knew where to go, because she followed Shifu and Oogway toward the kitchen. I showed Daiyu and Mei everything from the arena to the bunkhouse. Our last stop was the training hall.

"So this is where you practice?" Mei asked.

"Yeah." I said.

"Will you show us?" Daiyu asked, poking her head thru the door. I sighed, but showed them my skills. When I was done, Mei clapped.

"That was amazing!" she cried. I smiled for the first time since my parents' death.

"I wanted to show my mom and dad." I said, my smile disappearing. "But….."

"You know what?" Mei said. "I bet they were watching now, and they're very proud of you." My smile returned, and we chuckled.

That night, Oogway came to me in my room. Mei was in one of the guest rooms and Daiyu was asleep in the Sacred Hall of Warriors, the only sheltered place big enough for her to sleep in. Oogway sat down next to me as I cuddled Xiaoqing in my arms.

"I'm sorry to hear about your parents." Oogway said.

"It's alright." I said. But it wasn't really true.

"You know, Destiny feels really bad about that." Oogway continued. "She was only trying to do the right thing."

"It's fine, really." I said, getting a little peeved. "I was just angry."

"Just remember Tai Lung: angry leads to hate, which will eventually lead to suffering."

"Yes master."

But darkness had already taken its toll. For the rest of my training, I became strong and ruthless. I kept studying the Thousand Scrolls of Kung Fu. I grew stronger and stronger every day. But something else grew stronger too: it was my love for Mei.

Yes, I'll admit it. I'm in love with Mei. I know that maybe if we had a cub, he'd look a bit weird. But I didn't care if we couldn't have cubs at all. I think Mei feels the same way. The only problem is I don't know for sure. She doesn't show her love. Then again, neither do I.

One day, when I was sixteen and she was fifteen, we were training together in the hall. Mei got interested in kung fu and became a student alongside me. Daiyu would watch us. When we were outside, she'd sit under a tree and when we were in the hall, she'd stick her head thru the doors since she couldn't fit all the way. Shifu watched us with interest. But then, Zeng came flying thru the doors and crash-landed (yet again) at Shifu's feet.

"Scroll for you." He groaned. Shifu rolled his eyes and accepted it. Mei and I flipped off the training field as Shifu read. He sighed.

"What's wrong?" Mei asked.

"It's Master Flying Rhino." Shifu said grimly. "He and the Anvil of Heaven need my help to fight against some crazy emperor invading from another land."

"Let us come with you." I insisted.

"No." Shifu said firmly. "It'll be safer if I go alone."

"When are you leaving?" Mei asked.

"Tomorrow." Shifu said. "Master Flying Rhino needs me as soon as he can."

"Couldn't Destiny help?" Daiyu asked. "I'm sure she wouldn't refuse." In fact, Destiny was still living with us. She says that the Jade Palace is the best home she's ever had.

"No." Shifu said. "I don't think the Immortals would allow her."

"But isn't she _stronger _than the Immortals and the gods?" I said.

"Tai Lung, I'll be _fine_." Shifu insisted. He walked off to get ready. Mei laughed.

"What?" I demanded.

"You are so funny." Mei said. "Are you trying to protect Shifu or something?" She laughed again and continued training. I love Mei's laugh. It's light and sweet and it makes you feel so good inside.

One night a week later, after Shifu had left, I had a nightmare. In the nightmare, I was on a ledge staring down at a battle raging twenty feet below. One army was made up completely of rhinos, so I knew it was the battle of the Anvil of Heaven against the crazy emperor. The emperor's army was made up completely of wolves in all colors. Suddenly, an arrow whizzed pass my head, striking a wolf soldier dead. I looked up above me and saw Shifu with his bow. I smiled. If Shifu was anything, he was a terrific archer. His bow has two sharpened points to be used as a close combat weapon. I climbed up the wall using my claws to get to him. He just kept firing arrows, killing a wolf with every shot. Then, Shifu whipped around and blocked a blow from a wolf soldier that had sneaked up on him. Shifu used his bow as a striking weapon to fight off the wolf, but the wolf had a sword. He kicked Shifu away and I could only watch as Shifu slid dangerously close to the edge. The wolf rushed over, but Shifu was up on his feet and ready. He hit away the wolf's sword and kicked him to the ground. It seemed that the wolf was unconscious, so Shifu turned and continued to fire at the other soldiers. But then the wolf woke up and gave Shifu a hard kick to his back. Shifu fell, and I rushed out to save him. But I only caught air. Shifu lay motionless on the sharp rocks below, dead.

I yelled, waking up abruptly from the dream. I had Xiaoqing held tightly to my chest. I dropped him on my bed and ran out of my room. I sprinted to the Sacred Hall of Warriors and scurried up a pillar to the top of the roof. Once there, I started to pace, thinking about what had happened. For some reason, I knew that the dream was going to come true.

"What's wrong?" I whipped around and saw Mei and Daiyu on the roof.

"It's Shifu." I told them about my dream.

"We must help him." Daiyu insisted. "I know that it will happen."

"I know." I said. "I'll go help him."

"No." Mei said. "We'll go together."

"Master Oogway will kill us." I said.

"Who cares?" Daiyu said. "Better us than Shifu." She crouched down and we all climbed on. Then the dragon sped away. Somehow, I knew where to go, and we arrived at the battlefield near the Thread of Hope just as the sun had risen. We had left the valley far behind, and we were at the exit to the bridges. I looked around for my master and saw the same scene as my dream. The Anvil of Heaven seemed to be winning. I spotted a rhino that was larger than the others in great battle armor, swinging his fists around and cracking enemy wolves' skulls in half. I frantically searched the two armies for Shifu. I didn't care where he was; I just wanted him to be alive.

"Do you see him?" Daiyu asked.

"No." I said. A horrifying thought came to me: what if I was too late? "Daiyu, go towards the rocks!" Daiyu obeyed, speeding to the cliff. She landed next to the rocks, and I leaped off. I was relieved and worried at the same time. Shifu wasn't dead. But where was he?

Suddenly, I felt a rough shove from behind, and I went flying into the rocks. I looked up and saw an arrow where my head was just three seconds ago. I looked over at the one who saved my life and saw Shifu with his bow and arrows.

"What in blazes are you doing?" he yelled, firing an arrow to kill a wolf soldier. "I told you to stay at the Jade Palace!"

"You really thought I'd listen?" I said. Shifu smiled and laughed.

"Since you, Mei, and Daiyu are here, why not help us out?" he said. Daiyu and Mei were way ahead of him. Mei sliced thru the soldiers with her kung fu, and Daiyu was crushing soldiers under her claws. I joined them. I didn't have any weapons, but I didn't need them. Once the Anvil of Heaven realized that Mei, Daiyu, and I were on their side, they fought harder. I thought we were doing great until I noticed a white dot out of the corner of my eye. I looked up and saw Shifu firing his arrows from the top of a cliff. When he disappeared behind the edge, I realized with horror that he was fighting a soldier; it was the same thing from my dream. I raced toward the cliff, but Shifu had already been knocked down over the edge. I was a mile away; I'd never make it.

But then, I felt a strange burst of energy. I took advantage of it and ran on all fours. I leaped up, catching Shifu in my arms before I crashed into the ground. I dropped him, and we both slammed into the cliff wall. I looked over and saw Shifu standing up, and I was relieved to see him alive.

"Thanks." He gasped, obviously trying to catch his breath. It was then I realized I must've knocked the wind out of him.

Oops.

But that was the least of our problems.

Both of us heard rumbling, and we looked up to see the cliff crumbling. Shifu and I ran away just as a boulder landed in the spot we were sitting.

"Run!" Shifu yelled, heading toward the valley. The Anvil of Heaven, Daiyu, and Mei obeyed, all running across the bridge to safety. Shifu and I trailed behind, making sure the enemy wolves didn't follow us. But while everyone else reached safety, Shifu tripped and fell, falling far behind. I rushed back, grabbing him before a bunch of large rocks occupied the space. We ran as fast as we could, but this time I tripped. To make things worse, I fell off the edge of the cliff. Shifu dived after me. He grabbed my paw with one hand and holding onto a small branch sticking out of the cliff with the other. The rocks went silent, and I sighed with relief. But, of course, it didn't last long. I heard a _SNAP!, _and I looked up to see the branch breaking. Daiyu thought fast and flew beside us. Shifu swung me up onto her back.

"Get him to safety!" he ordered. Daiyu turned and took me to Mei and the Anvil. Then she turned around to get Shifu, but then, the branch snapped completely off, and Shifu fell into the abyss.

"No!" I shouted. I wanted so badly to dive down after him and save him. But even I knew that would be suicidal. And I knew Daiyu would never get to him in time. Everyone mourned the lost of the great master, and I pounded my fists into the ground in anger. Mei knelt down beside me and put her arms around me. The large, armored rhino came up to me, and I finally realized he was Master Flying Rhino.

"Are you Tai Lung?" he asked me. "Son and student of Shifu?" I could only nod. The great rhino sighed. "Let's go. We should be getting back to the Valley of Peace. Grand Master Oogway must hear of this." With that, Master Flying Rhino turned and left. The rest of the Anvil of Heaven followed. Mei and Daiyu stayed by my side.

"First my parents, now him?" I said. "How many more must I lose to prove myself?"

"Prove yourself of what?" Mei demanded. "Of being a great warrior? You are the greatest warrior in all of China."

"She's right." Daiyu said. "Besides, maybe Destiny can help."

"Already helping." A voice said. The three of us looked up and saw a harpy eagle with Shifu on her back. The eagle landed next to us, and Shifu hopped down.

"How did-" But before I could finish, the harpy eagle transformed until Destiny was standing in front of us in her king cheetah form.

"If I told you once, I told you a thousand times." Destiny said. "Everyone has their time to die, and I will choose that time."

"Where's the Anvil of Heaven?" Shifu asked.

"They're on their way to the valley." Mei said. We all hopped on Daiyu to catch up. Destiny stayed behind.

"I will meet you at the palace." She said. "Oh, and be sure not to tell anyone how Shifu lived."

"Why?" Daiyu asked.

"The Immortals said so." Destiny laughed. With a snap of her fingers, the king cheetah disappeared in a puff of smoke. We all shrugged and Daiyu sped off. We met up with the Anvil in a few minutes. When Master Flying Rhino asked how Shifu lived, I told him that Daiyu found him clinging to a ledge a few feet below. And he believed me! But I didn't celebrate for too long; I knew that once Mei, Daiyu, and I got to the Jade Palace, we were dead meat. Oogway was totally going to skin us alive. But when we arrived on Daiyu's back, Oogway greeted us warmly. Destiny, who was standing with him, ordered a celebration.

And it lasted well thru into the night. Everyone kept congratulating me like I was the hero of the day. I couldn't tell if I was or not. Shifu had disappeared to talk to Oogway the moment we got home, as usual. But I figured it would only take about five minutes. I haven't seen him all night. So I broke away from a group of people admiring Daiyu to find him. Turns out, he was meditating under the Sacred Peach Tree.

_Why am I not surprised? _I thought. I walked over and sat down next to him, leaning against the bark of the peach tree.

"Any particular reason you aren't at the celebration?" he asked me, opening his eyes. I chuckled.

"I was having fun, and then I got bored." I said. Even though his back was to me, I could tell Shifu rolled his eyes. "Where's Destiny?"

"Talking with Oogway about the Dragon Warrior." Shifu replied. "Destiny says that the Dragon Warrior will not be chosen for years."

"Will _she _choose the Dragon Warrior?" I asked.

"I think she already has." Shifu said. "Destiny has the ability to travel thru time."

A thought struck me. "So, could she take people with her when she does it?" Shifu turned to me.

"Tai Lung, I know what you're thinking." He said. "Destiny can travel thru time and change the past and future. But once a person's time of death has come and gone, she cannot change it." My head dropped in shame and sadness. Shifu sighed. "I know you want your parents back. But at least you know that they're safe in Heaven."

"Yeah." I said. "I know. So, Destiny went forward into time and found the Dragon Warrior?"

"I think so." Shifu said. "Another thing about Destiny: she can go backward into time and change the past, but she can't go forward into time and change it." We both went quite for a moment. "So, how are things between you and Mei?" I jumped so high that I fell over. Shifu laughed.

"How did you know about that?" I asked.

"What kind of father doesn't know when his son is having a crush on someone?" Shifu replied. "I know that you and Mei like each other."

"Well, _I _like her." I said, sitting up. "But I don't know if _she _likes _me_." As if on cue, Shifu and I heard Mei calling for us. Shifu smirked craftily. "Oh no." I begged. "Don't do it!"

Too late.

"We're over here Mei!" Shifu shouted. Mei came running up the path, skidding to a halt right in front of us. She bowed to Shifu.

"I was just looking for Tai Lung." She said. "He sort of disappeared on me." I almost hit myself in the head; because it was then I realized that Mei had been standing next to me when we were watching Daiyu. I had forgotten all about her.

"Oh don't worry." Shifu said, standing up. "I was just on my way to bed anyway." Shifu walked away. "So I'll just leave you two alone to talk."

There are times when I really hate it when he goes to "Embarrassing Father Mode".

This was one of them.

Mei seemed uncomfortable as she sat down next to me. She would look at me, but then quickly avert her gaze when I looked back. I felt so stupid; I'm the greatest kung fu warrior in all of China for Heaven's sake. Why in the devil's name am I so shy around a _girl_?

A pretty girl.

A very beautiful, headstrong, dedicated, tough…..

There I go again, listing all the great things about Mei. I sighed. Mei was the first to speak.

"What a gorgeous night, huh?" she asked me, staring up at the stars. "The stars shine so beautifully."

"Not as beautifully as you." I blurted out. Mei jumped and stared at me, and I cover my mouth. Did I just say that? Did I _really _just say that?

"What did you say?" Mei asked.

"Uh, I meant the stars." I said. _Oh shut up and just tell her. _"The stars aren't as beautiful as you are." I waited for her to speak. She glanced up at the moon. Did I say something wrong?

"Well, the moon is nice too." She said. "It almost outshines the stars. Just like how you outshine all the other kung fu warriors in the world." I smiled, taking that as a compliment.

"Well, apart from Oogway." I said.

"Yeah." Mei chuckled. "What about Shifu?"

"He's still a lot better than me." I agreed. We laughed. Then we went shy again.

"So, how far are you in the Thousand Scrolls?" Mei asked.

"I've already gotten 900 mastered." I said proudly. "I'd say that by the time I'm twenty, I'll have all of them mastered. I'll be Tai Lung: The Master of the Thousand Scrolls." Mei laughed.

"I have absolutely no doubt about that." She said. "But what about becoming the Dragon Warrior?"

"That too." I said. "I'll have all the scrolls mastered, and then Oogway will _have _to make me the Dragon Warrior."

"You deserve it." Mei said. She yawned. "Well, I'm off to bed. Nice talking to you." Before Mei left, she leaned over and gave me a kiss on the cheek. She smiled, stood, and left. When she was gone, I sighed happily and leaned against the tree trunk again. At least I knew that Mei loved me too. But now, she also thinks I should be the Dragon Warrior.

Now, I really wanted to be the Dragon Warrior.

I wanted to impress Mei.

*****

"You mean I wanted to be the Dragon Warrior just to impress a _girl_?" Tai Lung exclaimed. Shifu laughed at the cub's surprised expression.

"Apparently." He chuckled.

"Wow." Tai Lung said, still not believing it. "Shifu, what was Mei like?"

"She was smart, beautiful, kind, but also tough and headstrong." Shifu said. "You really did love her a lot."

"But what happened?" Tai Lung asked. "Where is she now?" Shifu's face fell.

"I think it would be best if we read on tomorrow." Tai Lung shrugged and ran off to bed. Shifu sighed; he knew exactly what had happened to Mei.

While Tai Lung was imprisoned, Mei locked herself away in the palace. She practiced in the middle of the night, when none of the other students were awake. She was still around when the Furious Five were at the palace. During the day, she hid in her room. At night, she trained. When she was to evacuate the valley, she refused, confining herself to her room. She had planned to confront Tai Lung and bring him to his senses. But she fell asleep before she could get the chance. The next morning, after Po had defeated Tai Lung, everyone believed he was dead. When Mei heard, she confined herself to her room, crying everyday and well into the night. She kept it up for three days before Shifu went to her with food. She hadn't eaten in the three days she was crying. But when Shifu walked into her room, he was horrified to see Mei's bloody corpse on the ground with a knife hilt sticking out of her chest where her heart was. She left a note next to her body.

_Shifu,_

_By the time you read this, I will be dead. I cannot live my life knowing the one I love is dead. I want to join Tai Lung for an eternity in Heaven. I'll have Destiny take me to Tai Lung. I know you'll understand. Please, respect my memory as Mei, the one who loved the Master of the Thousand Scrolls of Kung Fu._

_You're student,_

_Mei_

_P.S. Shifu, I have loved you like a father. And I'm sorry Tai Lung almost murdered you. I blame myself._

After Shifu had read the note, he had dropped the bowl of dumplings, breaking the bowl and spilling the food everywhere. Shifu had rushed to Mei's body, holding her close and crying.

Mei had committed suicide.

Shifu almost did the same if Tigress had not come at the moment she did. Then Destiny came, taking Mei's body to Heaven. Shifu believed that Mei would be reunited with Tai Lung, and at least they could live happily together forever.

But after finding Tai Lung here, Shifu knows that Mei's wish will not be granted.

For the first time since Mei's death, Shifu cried silently over the loss of the brave lioness.

A/N: Is this getting too sad for anyone? Because if it is, I apologize. But it's not getting any happier until we get closer to the end. Read and Review please!


	6. It's Time

_Inspired by a Kung Fu Panda story on Chinese New Year._

Chapter Six- It's Time

The next morning, Shifu woke up and found himself next to the fire, which had long since been put out. He realized then that he must've cried himself to sleep. He sighed sadly, remembering the day of Mei's death. Shifu still couldn't erase the terrible scene from his memory; seeing Mei's corpse all bloody with a knife in her heart. Shifu shivered, thinking about how he almost met the same fate if Tigress had not come and saved his life. Shifu remembered seeing Destiny do the same thing to Mei that she had done to Tai Lung's parents, and he wondered what Destiny had done when Po performed the Wuxi Finger Hold. Shifu froze in thought.

Was _that _the reason Tai Lung was here?

Shifu had to shake off the thought when Tai Lung came out. After a quick breakfast, Shifu continued to read.

*****

When I was nineteen, I experienced the best Year of the Dragon of my life.

But it was also the most terrifying.

I wasn't helping to set up the festivities; I was mastering the 998th scroll of kung fu. 998 down, just two more to go. After going thru the technique at least twelve times, I mastered it, and moved on to the second to last scroll. Mei came in then, smiling broadly. I smiled back. Ever since that kiss she had given me just three years before, we've been dating and having a lot of fun. The only problem was Shifu, who pushed us to work hard on our kung fu training. So we only got to have a date every two weeks, on the only days we had some free time. Most of our dates were spent on the roof of the Jade Palace, looking out into the starry night.

"Still studying?" She asked playfully.

"Duh." I said. "I'm so close to done too." The looked at Scroll Number 999 and scoffed. I performed the technique three times before getting it right. I pulled out the final scroll, but Mei stopped me.

"I'm afraid the last scroll will have to wait." She said. "Shifu needs us." I groaned, but set the scroll down and followed Mei to the Training Hall. Shifu and Destiny were waiting for us. Shifu looked troubled.

"Is there a problem?" I asked nervously.

"Well, yes." He said. "Destiny…uh…"

"There's going to be trouble tonight at the celebration." Destiny said. "Every year, evil spirits get a chance to escape and wreak chaos in this world."

"That's why we always put up those little luck charms?" Mei guessed. Destiny nodded.

"Apparently, some evil _warrior _spirits are going to escape, and they're going to attack the palace." Shifu said.

"This is why we must stop them from coming to this world." Destiny said. I laughed out loud.

"How in Heaven's name do you expect we do that?" I said. "We don't even know where they come out."

"I do." Mei said. We turned to her.

"You do?" Shifu asked.

"Yeah; every Chinese New Year, I see these bad spirits coming out of this cave." Mei said. "I guess it's the exit."

"Do you still remember where it is?" Destiny asked.

"Yeah, it's about a mile from here." Mei said confidently.

"Its official: we set off tonight, at sunset." Destiny confirmed. She left then, talking to Mei. I turned to Shifu.

"But sunset is an hour away." I said.

"We'll just have to use that hour we have to prepare." He told me.

"But what about the Thousand Scrolls?" I protested.

"You can continue studying them tomorrow." Shifu said simply before he left. I realized then that he didn't know I was on the last scroll. I sighed, but joined him, Destiny, and Mei as they walked to the Sacred Hall of Warriors.

"Now, it's not easy to defeat the deceased." Destiny explained to us. "They can easily harm us, but we cannot harm them as easily. So we'll need weapons that can destroy the deceased."

"Such as?" I questioned.

"The only weapon that can truly destroy the spirits is your _qi_ power." Destiny told me. "I can help you unlock it, but it will be very hard to control, considering you haven't done it before." Destiny looked at each of us in turn with a dark look. "There is a fifty percent chance that you could die from too much power." I almost told Destiny that there wasn't a single chance in the world that I was going on with the plan, but before I could, Shifu stepped up to the king cheetah.

"I'll go first." He offered. My eyes widened with shock.

"Are you crazy?" I exclaimed "Did you not hear what Destiny said about dying?"

"If it'll save the Valley of Peace, I'll do it." Shifu said. "It's my responsibility as its guardian." I wanted to protest, but Destiny had already started a chant in a language I didn't recognize.

"Verlos die krag per hierdie gees." She said. After repeating the chant three times, Shifu dropped down to his knees, holding his head. After a minute, Destiny stopped her chant, and Shifu sighed with relief.

"Did it work?" I asked worriedly. Shifu looked at me with a crafty smile, and then pointed his palm towards me. Suddenly, I wasn't touching the ground, and I yelped as I saw a white, mist-like cloud lifting me up. The others laughed for a minute before Shifu set me down.

"That answers your question?" Shifu laughed. Destiny moved on, unleashing the _qi_ power from me and Mei. The pain was excruciating for about thirty seconds. But it felt like thirty years. But I managed to hold it in. Turns out each of our _qi _powers had a different color. Shifu was white, Mei was green, and Destiny was gold. My _qi_ color scared me a little; it was black.

But I shook it off. With Mei in the lead, we all ran off to face the evil spirits. Mei led us a mile away from the village, deep into the forest. When we stopped, we were outside a cave. But it was so small that you'd have to be the size of a baby badger to fit thru the entrance. We all waited near the entrance as the sun set. When the sun had finally disappeared, the spirits came forth.

The spirits were just regular evil warriors. But they were white and translucent. They still had their weapons with them. Most of the warriors carried broken weapons and shields. Both the weapons and the spirits were covered in ghostly blood.

"Now!" Destiny commanded. We raised our hands and unleashed our _qi _power to lock the entrance. Destiny told us that all we had to do was focus on locking the gate, and she'd to the rest. Our combined _qi _color clouds formed a wall at the entrance to the cave.

"Seehond hierdie deur ewig." Destiny spoke in the strange language. The _qi _clouds formed a solid wall and disappeared. The spirits tried to move thru the gate, but they were unable to.

"Now, they will never bother us again." Shifu said confidently.

"What about them?!" Mei exclaimed, pointing behind us. We all whipped around and saw four evil warrior spirits that got past us. I almost cursed, but I knew Shifu would've slapped me silly. So the four of us ran after the spirits. We managed to get ahead of them and we engaged in a _qi _battle. Mei fought an alligator, Destiny fought a gorilla, Shifu fought a crocodile, and I fought a komodo dragon.

We were winning, but I could tell that Mei was losing. I was too. The croc was obviously a good fighter, and I couldn't help but wonder how he died. Luckily, Destiny and Shifu had finished off their warriors and helped. Destiny joined me and Shifu helped Mei. Finally, the croc got a good hit to my stomach, knocking the wind out of me. Destiny was hit away from me and into a tree. Shifu was slammed into Mei and they went flying off in one direction. Both the croc and the gator came at me at once. I used my _qi _power to fight them, but I could feel myself getting weaker. I was using too much of my energy. The two of the spirits felt me weakening, I knew it. They were playing with me; soon, I'd be too weak to fight, and they'd kill me.

Sure enough, I got so weak that I couldn't lay down a punch. I just swung my arm and the gator and croc would step back casually. The croc slammed me against a tree and slammed his hand into a pressure point on my neck. I tried to breathe, but I felt no air going in or out of my lungs. The gator raised his sword up to kill me, and I knew it was the end for me. But I also knew that Destiny would take care of Mei and Shifu.

Then, right before the alligator could lay down his death blow, a large black streak tackled him and sent him hurdling into Destiny, who killed him instantly. Then the black streak came again, slamming the croc spirit to the ground. I could feel myself slipping into unconsciousness. I looked up to see the black streak was a black wolf with a white star on his chest the size of a polar bear. I saw the wolf kill the croc spirit and come toward me. That was all I saw before I passed out.

*****

When I woke up, I couldn't see much. Just a bunch of blurry shapes. I blinked about a million times before I saw Mei standing over me. The Jade Palace doctor, a vixen named Yun, was treating my wound from the pressure point. When Mei saw me awake, she hugged me tightly.

"Oh my gods I was so worried!" she said. "Are you alright?"

"Mei, I'm fine." I grunted. "Really." Mei let go and smiled.

"Well, can you blame me for being scared for you?" she asked. "I mean, I know Destiny said you would live, but I didn't believe her."

"You hardly ever do." Destiny said as she walked in.

"Where's Shifu?" I asked, remembering the lard wolf.

"He's fine, but he'll be asleep for the rest of the night." Destiny said. I sighed with relief.

"Well, I guess you are no longer in need of my service." Yun said. "You'd best be on your way."

"Sure." I said. I hopped out of the bed and ran to the Sacred Hall of Warriors. The thousandth scroll was still there, waiting for me. I looked at it and started to practice.

But the last scroll was hard. I kept doing it over and over again, but I couldn't get it right. But I wouldn't give up. I kept trying. Like Shifu always told me, "Fall down seven times, but then get back up eight times." So I did. I kept going and going for hours. Finally, I got it. I breathed deeply, praising myself for completing all the Thousand Scrolls of Kung Fu. I was officially the Master of the Thousand Scrolls. I looked outside and saw the moon in the sky with all the stars accompanying it.

I had to tell Shifu.

He _had _to know.

So I grabbed the last scroll and ran quickly but quietly to his room. I walked in quietly and roused him from his sleep. He looked at me with extremely tired eyes.

"Tai Lung?" he groaned. "Go back to sleep. It's the middle of the night."

"Shifu, I wanted to show you something."

"Can't it wait until tomorrow?"

"No."

Shifu sighed, but sat up and took the scroll from my hands. He opened it and looked at it. Immediately, all his tiredness went away.

"You _completed _the Thousand Scrolls?" he asked me. I performed the final scroll in front of him. He smiled broadly. I sat back down in front of him.

"Are you proud?" I asked nervously. All of a sudden, I was a little kid in front of his father. Shifu smiled and ruffled the fur on my head.

"Make sure you're presentable tomorrow." He said. "It's time for you to be presented to Master Oogway."

"Will I get the Dragon Scroll?" I asked excitedly.

"We'll have to see about that tomorrow, won't we?" he said. I bowed and walked out of his room. Once outside, I leaped into the air and whooped for joy. In my celebrating on my way to my room, I woke up Mei. She came out of her room, still dressed in a white nightgown kimono.

"Tai Lung?" she yawned. "What is it?" I picked her up and twirled her around, kissing her.

"I'm going to be the Dragon Warrior!" I exclaimed. "I've complete all the scrolls of kung fu!" Once Mei had realized what I was celebrating for, she shrieked and celebrated with me. We kept it up until Destiny told us to go to bed or we'd wake up the entire Valley of Peace.

The next day, I took a bath, got dressed nicely, and Mei and I walked to the Sacred Hall of Warriors. Shifu was waiting for us.

"Mei, I think it would be better if you stayed outside." Shifu suggested. Mei didn't protest.

"Besides, I have to get something from my room." She said, looking at me with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "A little gift." With that, she walked away. Shifu and I walked into the hall, where Oogway was waiting. Shifu stood beside him and I stood in front of him. Oogway raised his hand and closed his eyes. I knew he was studying my _qi _power. I glanced at Shifu and smiled. Shifu was all smiles back. I looked to Oogway as he stopped.

"Your spirit and _qi _is strong." He said. "That is one of the requirements to be the Dragon Warrior."

I smiled, knowing I would be the Dragon Warrior and finally get the Dragon Scroll.

"Destiny has gone to your future and saw what you will do as a kung fu warrior." Oogway continued.

I already knew what I would do after I got that scroll. I'd make Shifu proud of me, Mei would be impressed with me, and Destiny will have done her job by finally sealing my fate.

Oogway looked to Shifu. "I'm sorry. But he is not the one."

A/N: You can guess right now that the next chapter is going to be Tai Lung going to Chor Gom Prison. The chapter might be a bit short. Just a warning. Now for the African translations.

Verlos die krag per hierdie gees- Release the strength within this soul.

Seehond hierdie deur ewig- Seal this gate forever

FYI: The black wolf was Shifu in his werewolf form.


	7. Rampage

Chapter Seven- Rampage

My smile dropped immediately.

_Not the one. _

Had I heard right? Did Oogway reject me the title? No. He couldn't have.

But sure enough, Master Oogway turned away from me and headed toward the Moon Pool. I looked at Shifu.

_Say something. _I begged in my thoughts. _Why won't you just say something?_ Shifu looked at me, tried to say something, but decided otherwise and turned to follow his master.

_No. _

I felt a lot of emotions at once. Anger, defeat, sadness.

_NO!!!_

I ran out of the hall as fast as I could. But Shifu stopped me, speeding up and skidding to a halt right in front of me.

"Tai Lung listen to me." He started.

"Why didn't you say anything?" I demanded. "Why didn't you tell Oogway he was wrong?"

"Master Oogway is never wrong." Shifu said. I turned away from him and walked off. I heard Shifu sigh behind me, but he left. I was mad. He knew it. I bet he wanted me to cool off, so he left me alone.

I wish I could've been able to thank him for doing it.

But I had no reason to.

I just got madder.

So I went to my favorite spot on the roof of the Jade Palace to think. I stayed there until sunset. It was then that Mei had come up to me. She was all smiles. She didn't know I was mad. She didn't know I was rejected the title I believed should've been mine. She thought I was all happy because I was the Dragon Warrior.

But I wasn't.

Mei came up to me and sat down next to me. She grasped my hand, and I had to smile.

"Hey Dragon Warrior." She said playfully. My smile shrunk a little. "I have something for you." Before I could tell her the truth, Mei gently pushed a small package into my hands. "You may have the secret to limitless power, but you never know when you'll need a weapon." I unwrapped the package and stared at its contents with awe.

It was a fan, made completely of metal.

"I made it out of broken swords and throwing stars." Mei said. "Sometimes, Sǐ Wáng's soldiers would break their swords. So I collected them and carved them with the Sword of Heroes. I cut off the tips of the throwing stars to make the points."

"You used the Sword of Heroes?" I asked incredulously. That was a very sacred sword in the Hall of Warriors.

"When I explained the purpose to Oogway, he allowed me." Mei said. I opened up the fan. Mei must've polished it, because I could see my reflection clearly. I smiled. It was the best weapon I had ever seen.

"It's awesome." I said. "Thanks."

"I do have one more thing." Mei said, rummaging thru her pockets. She checked every one, and then groaned. "Dang it. I left it in my room."

"Well, could you drop off the fan in my room on the way there?" I asked her, handing the fan to her.

"You'll wait here?" she asked.

"Sure." I said. Mei smiled and ran off. I looked off to where the sun had set. It was nighttime now. I felt my anger return to me.

The Dragon Scroll was supposed to be mine.

I kept repeating the thought in my head until I thought I'd burst. I got up and ran into the village as the moon rose. I slammed into a cart, smashing it to splinters.

"Hey watch it!" the pig tending the cart screamed at me. But I didn't stop. As the night passed, I kept going thru the valley, attacking villagers and destroying homes. I didn't have a care in the world.

I didn't realize how evil I was until Destiny helped me, but that's way in the future.

After a few hours of that, I noticed the Jade Palace out of the corner of my eye. I started running up to there.

If Oogway wouldn't give me the scroll, I'd take it myself.

I sprinted up the stairs on all fours and burst thru the doors. One of the servants must've warned Shifu and Oogway about me, because Daiyu came running towards me.

"Tai Lung!" the black dragon yelled. "Stop this!"

But I didn't stop. In fact, I used a nerve attack to immobilize Daiyu the moment she got a foot away from me. The dragon fell, a shocked look frozen on her face. I would've killed her then and there, but I was too power hungry for the Dragon Scroll, so I continued. I got to the Sacred Hall of Warriors and burst right thru the doors. Oogway and Shifu were waiting by the Moon Pool. Shifu glared and ran towards me with a flying kick. I kept coming. Nobody, not even Shifu, was going to stop me.

Then, I saw him falter.

I didn't know why, but he faltered in his kick.

That didn't stop me from swiping at his legs hard, knocking him off guard. I heard the familiar snap of a bone breaking, and I punched Shifu all the way back to Oogway's feet. Then I resumed running. I could see the Dragon Scroll. I leaped up to its shrine, ready to grab it.

Suddenly, I felt pressure against my throat.

A clawed hand pressed against my pressure points.

And then, I fell to the floor.

I saw a blurry image of a wounded Shifu.

Then my sight went black.

*****

Shifu stopped reading to look at Tai Lung.

"Did I _really _try and hurt you?" the cub asked.

"You _did _hurt me." Shifu said. "That's why I walk with a limp; my bones never healed correctly." Tai Lung gasped a little.

"I'm sorry!" he said. "I didn't know I would hurt you! I just-"

"Tai Lung, relax." Shifu said. "It's alright. It's in the past." _Sort of. _

Tai Lung calmed down a bit.

"I do have two questions: What happened to Mei after that, and who was that black wolf that saved me from those evil spirits?"

Shifu sighed. Tai Lung deserved truth, even if it would hurt him.

"Well, after you were defeated, Mei died of a broken heart." Shifu explained.

"She died?" Tai Lung asked.

"Well, no." Shifu said. "She killed herself."

"What?! Why?"

"She was upset." Shifu said. "She thought you were in Heaven and she wanted to be with you."

"But, I'm not there." Tai Lung said sadly. "Now Mei's alone."

"Don't worry." Shifu said. "At least she's safe. Now, the wolf that saved you was actually a werewolf." Shifu smiled. "It was me."

"You?" Tai Lung said. "No way." To prove it, Shifu set the memoir down and transformed into his werewolf self. "Cool!"

"Now, don't you think we should continue?" Shifu said, returning to normal.

"In a bit." Tai Lung said. "I'm tired." Shifu looked outside and saw the moon rising.

_Have we really been reading for so long? _Shifu thought. He shrugged and he and Tai Lung went to bed.

A/N: Alright! The next two chapters are going to be Tai Lung's time in Chor Gom Prison. Now, there's not going to be much, just some significant moments. The first may be a bit short. Read and Review!


	8. Chor Gom Prison again

Chapter Eight- Chor Gom Prison

The next morning, Shifu and Tai Lung had a quick breakfast before continuing.

*****

When I woke up, I felt all groggy. When my mind and vision cleared up, I noticed that something heavy was on my back, and my wrists were chained to the rock island I was on.

"Tai Lung?"

I looked up and saw Mei kneeling down in front of me.

*****

"Mei?" Tai Lung asked. "I thought you said she was dead."

"She died twenty years later." Shifu explained. "But it'll be easier to explain if we read on."

*****

Mei sighed as she looked into my eyes.

"Oogway and Shifu told me what happened." Mei said. "Why did you do it?"

"You know good and well that scroll should've been mine." I said. I tried to stand, but I couldn't move. "What the devil is on my back? Where am I?"

"You're in Chor Gom Prison." Mei said sadly. "The Anvil of Heaven is the guards. You're on a rock island that's supposed to be bottomless. Your wrists are chained to boulders hanging over the sides. The thing on your back is special armor Oogway designed. It's a tortoise shell with jade acupuncture needles that block your _qi _flow. Basically, your entire body and its system are immobilized. You can still breathe, but not very deeply. You can use your eyes to see, and your heart and lungs still work. But your digestive system and every other organ don't work. I think it's so you can't break out if they try to feed you. So you can go a hundred years without food or water, and you won't die. Should the needles be removed, you won't be starving."

"Impressive." I said, despite the fact I was the one in the armor.

"Tai Lung, you're sentenced by Oogway to be in here for life." Mei said.

"But you said I can't starve, so how else am I supposed to die?" I protested.

"The possibilities are endless." Mei replied. "But it's not like the Anvil of Heaven can kill you if they wanted." I looked by her and noticed giant crossbows being manned by some rhino guards.

"So that's it?" I demanded. "I can't see you anymore?"

"Oh no." Mei assured, gently patting my cheek. "Oogway has allowed visiting hours. Unfortunately, the commander of the Anvil of Heaven, Commander Vachir, only allows me one hour."

"A day?" I asked hopefully.

"No." Mei said with a saddened voice. "I can only come at the beginning of every month for one hour."

"But that's not fair!" I exclaimed.

"It was the best Oogway could do when he and Vachir were debating it." Mei said.

"What about Shifu?" I demanded. "What does he have to do with this?"

"He agreed prison was better than death." Mei said. "And he's on a crutch because you broke his leg." Mei sighed. "He's waiting at the gate. He wants to talk to you."

"Fine." I said bitterly. Mei called Shifu over, and I looked up to see him painfully limping to us. Mei walked off a little ways to give us privacy, but I wish she had stayed.

"Tai Lung." Shifu's voice forced me to look at him. "You were the greatest warrior in all of China. And now, you've become the most evil. What happened?"

"You denied me what I deserved." I said bitterly.

"Being denied a title you desired is not a good reason to become a murderer." Shifu scolded.

"Who ever said I killed anyone?" I countered.

"The point is you _almost _did." he said.

"So that's it?" I demanded. "You're mad at me, so I'm just going to be locked up forever? The only reason I was mad was because you took away everything from me. First the scroll, and now my life."

"Tai Lung, someday you'll understand." Shifu said. "Until then, goodbye my son." With that, Shifu stood and painfully limped away. Mei returned to my side.

"Son." I said with disgust. "How dare he call me that after what he did to me?"

"Tai Lung, listen." Mei said. "We'll figure it out. You haven't lost everything; you still have me. I'll come at the beginning of every month just to see you."

"Hey lioness!" Vachir called from the drawbridge. "Time's up!"

"Just a minute!" Mei called back. She turned to me and whispered, "I'll find the secret the limitless power and tell you. Then, we can run away together and start our lives over." Mei gave me a kiss. "I promise." Suddenly, Vachir was standing in front of us.

"Lioness, it's time to go." he said.

"I know." Mei said coolly. She stood and walked away. When she wasn't looking, Vachir gave me a kick to the face, knocking out one of my teeth. Little did I know that it was the beginning of the torture Vachir was going to put me thru for twenty years. Mei and Vachir walked out the door and the drawbridge was lifted, leaving me isolated in darkness.

And so began my twenty years in Chor Gom Prison.


	9. Years in Prison

Chapter Nine- Avalanches and Prisons

Shifu was about to read when he heard snoring beside him. He looked down and saw Tai Lung curled up in a ball, asleep. Shifu rolled his eyes and set the book down. He shook the cub awake.

"What is it?" Tai Lung asked when he was awake.

"Why are you asleep?" Shifu asked. "Is the story of your life getting boring?" Shifu smirked, but Tai Lung just turned away and walked off to his room. Shifu's smirk disappeared. "Was it something I said?" Shifu got up and followed the cub into his room. But when Shifu looked in, he didn't see the cub anywhere. "Tai Lung?" he called. Shifu checked everywhere; under the bed, behind the nightstand, and every corner. But the cub was nowhere in sight. Shifu walked out of the room and called for Tai Lung again. The sound bounced off the walls of Chor Gom Prison. When it was silent, Shifu still heard nothing. So he walked outside and looked around.

He found something.

But it wasn't what he'd expect.

Shifu kneeled down next to the paw print in the snow. More of them led deep into the snowy mountains ahead. By the looks of how they were put together, the owner of the paws were running on all fours.

The paw prints belonged to a snow leopard.

"Tai Lung." Shifu said. Immediately, he ran off to find the little cub. He ran all the way to the top but didn't see the cub anywhere. So he sprinted back down and found a ledge to another mountain about five feet away from him. So with a flying leap, Shifu jumped to that mountain and started to climb up, searching for Tai Lung. But after an hour of trudging thru the snow, Shifu never found anything. He looked up and saw a small cave. The paw prints were leading into it. Shifu walked in.

"Tai Lung?" he called softly. Suddenly, some ice fell and hit his head. Shifu moved forward, looking for the cub. He didn't risk yelling for him in case of a cave in. After a minute, he found the cub in a small hole in the wall. Tai Lung was sniffing, like he had been crying.

"Tai Lung, I have been worried sick about you." Shifu scolded.

"Why do you care?" Tai Lung asked. "I grew up to be a great warrior. But Destiny decided I would be a monster. And I don't want to hurt you."

"Tai Lung, don't you see that you can change that?" Shifu said. "When you grew up, you tried to get the Dragon Scroll. But now, someone else has it. You have a second chance to change your life." Shifu sighed. "And I might have my last chance in raising a child. My last chance to raise you properly." Tai Lung ran forward and hugged Shifu, crying. Shifu comforted him for a moment, before he heard rumbling. He looked up and saw the ice falling.

"Run!" he yelled. He and Tai Lung sprinted thru the cave leaping out of the entrance just as the cave was destroyed. But their trouble wasn't over yet, because then, and avalanche came toward them. Shifu led Tai Lung back to Chor Gom. Tai Lung made it across, but Shifu was caught in the avalanche and fell. Tai Lung saw a chance and didn't hesitate.

Tai Lung reached out and grabbed Shifu's hand, pulling him up as the snow fell. They breathed deeply. Shifu looked over at Tai Lung and smiled.

"Like I said: you have another chance to change." He said. Tai Lung smiled too.

"Can we finish the memoir now?" he asked. Shifu nodded and they went inside. After starting a fire to warm up, Shifu continued.

*****

I figured my years in prison would be boring. In fact, they were painful and happy at the same time.

Mei did as she had promised, and she came to see me for an hour every month. I was glad that the next time she visited me I had grown my tooth back in from when Vachir had knocked it out. Mei always came to me with a smile.

"Hey." She said, kneeling down to me. "How's it going?"

"Great." I lied. Truth is, Vachir tended to hurt me whenever he could.

"Good." Mei said, pulling something out of her pocket. "Remember that gift I told you about? The one I left in my room?" I nodded. Mei showed me a braided necklace she had made. On the braided chord was the black Yang half of the Yin-Yang symbol. Mei put around my neck and tucked it into the shell so Vachir wouldn't see. "I have one too." Mei said, showing me her white Yin half. "You know, so you can't forget me."

"How can I?" I asked. "I can never forget those eyes. Not since the day I met you."

"You know, it's silly, but I'm hoping you will get out someday." Mei said.

"Like that'll ever happen." I grumbled.

"Have faith." She told me. "You _will _get out of here. Even if I have to break you out myself."

"Mei, don't wait for me." I said. "Go out and live your life. You shouldn't have to worry about me."

"I want to." Mei said. "I love you." I smiled. For the rest of the hour, we talked. When Vachir came to get Mei, he slapped my mouth.

And that's how it went for the first five years I was in prison. Mei would come every month to talk to me until Vachir came to get her. Every time he did, I was hit on the head or in the face. When Mei wasn't around, I would make a list of things to talk about with her. Vachir would beat me up, but I would heal before Mei ever found out. I never told her. Life was going pretty well.

But then something happened. It was my sixth year in prison. It was the day Mei was supposed to come. I was eager and excited. I had so much to talk to her about. But I waited for hours on end until I fell asleep. The next morning, she still wasn't here. I thought that maybe she had forgotten, and she'd still come. But Mei didn't forget anything. She can remember every single gift she's given me at my birthdays. So I waited every day until another month went by. And another. It had been three months when Mei finally came.

"I'm so sorry." She said.

"Where were you?" I asked her.

"Vachir demanded to Oogway that my visiting hours should be cut since I'm the only one that visits you." Mei said.

"That's not fair!" I exclaimed.

"It doesn't matter." Mei said. "Vachir doesn't care."

"So when will I see you?" I asked.

"One hour, every three months." Mei said sadly.

"It's okay." I assured. "Let's use that time we have together." So we did, talking about everything we wanted to talk about until time was up. Then it was the usual routine: Vachir gets Mei and he hits me when she doesn't look.

I thought things would still work out. I used to be able to see Mei twelve times a year. Then it turned into four times. But I could live with it. At least I could still see Mei. But then, Vachir changed the visiting hours again. Mei could only come every six months. Two visits a year. Then it was every twelve months. One visit a year. Finally, Vachir said once every three years.

Life stinks.

I spent Mei's visits talking with her. Every time she came, I could see her getting older. But that didn't mean she was getting any less beautiful. I didn't care about being in prison. Everything I needed was talking to me.

Then, my life went horrible.

It was my fifteenth year in prison.

It was the day Mei was supposed to come.

Instead, Vachir came down. He was smiling and mean smile.

"Hey kitty." He told me. If I've told him once, I've told him a million times, I don't like being called "kitty".

"What Vachir?" I asked. "Where's Mei?"

"Oh, you don't need to worry about _her _anymore." Vachir taunted.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"She's gone buddy!" he said. "She got tired of seeing you. She told me, and I quote, 'I'm tired of being attached to a criminal.'"

"Mei wouldn't say that!" I said.

"You wanna bet?" Vachir asked. "She's never coming back. She even told me to cancel the visiting hours. I didn't, thinking she'd change her mind. But why do I even bother?" The commander walked away. "G'night kitty!" he called as the drawbridge closed.

*****

Shifu cursed out loud.

"Baba!" Tai Lung scolded.

"Sorry." Shifu said. "But I never liked Vachir."

"He lied, didn't he?" Tai Lung guessed.

"Yes." Shifu said. "Mei was told by Vachir that he was cancelling visiting hours, no matter what. Mei told Vachir to give you a message from her. She wanted to let you know that she loved him and she'd see you soon."

"Did she?" Tai Lung asked.

"Let's see." Shifu said, continuing.

*****

I stared at the stone below me.

Mei.

She was gone.

She wasn't coming back.

But she still loves me. I know it. Then a light bulb went off in my head.

Shifu.

He took her away from me.

All of a sudden, all my feelings were replaced. I felt anger, hatred, but also love. For Mei.

_I'll get out of here. _I thought. _I'll break out of this prison and kill Vachir for all he's done to me. I'll go to the Jade Palace and kill all the students. I'll murder Oogway for denying me the title._

I let out a growl. I was becoming a monster.

I didn't care.

_I'll get Shifu. I'll crush him, slit his throat and spill the blood everywhere. I'll get Mei. We'll live in the Jade Palace. I get the secret to limitless power and make us immortal. And then, we'll live together forever. _

With those thoughts in my head, I fell asleep.

*****

"Did I really think that?" Tai Lung asked.

"I guess so." Shifu said.

"Whoa."

"It gets better." Shifu said sarcastically.

*****

Five years went by pretty fast. During those five, years, I was plotting my escape and my revenge. Vachir continued to torture me.

Then, one day, as my eyes were closed in thought, I heard Vachir yell. I perked up my ears and listened.

"WHAT?" he yelled. "Double the guard? Extra precautions? Your prison may not be adequate?" I had to strain my ears to hear what was next. "You doubt my present security?"

"Absolutely not."

I jumped a little. It was Zeng. What was he doing here?

"Shifu does." Zeng said. "I'm just a messenger."

"I'll give you a message for your Master Shifu." Vachir growled. I heard very faint footsteps across the bridges above. "Escape from Chor Gom Prison is _impossible_!" I smirked briefly.

As Oogway once said: nothing is impossible.

"One way in, one way out." Vachir continued as he and Zeng walked. They were obviously coming down here. "One thousand guards and _one _prisoner."

"Yes, but that prisoner is Tai Lung." Zeng said a tremble in his voice. I heard the drawbridge come down.

"Behold Tai Lung." Vachir said.

"I'll…uh…I'm just gonna wait right here." Zeng said.

"It's nothing to worry about." Vachir chuckled. "It's perfectly safe." I heard the two of them come towards me. "Crossbows! At the ready!"

"Crossbows?" Zeng asked as the guards obeyed their commanding.

"Hey, tough guy." Vachir said. "Did ya hear? Oogway's finally going to give someone the Dragon Scroll and it's _not _gonna be you."

"What are you doing?!" Zeng exclaimed. "Don't get him mad!"

_Best do as the messenger says. _I thought.

"What's he going to do about it?" Vachir asked. "I've got him completely immobilized." _You mean _Oogway _has me completely immobilized. _I thought. Then, there was a stomp on the ground, and I felt pain shooting up my tail.

_Oh, I _know _he didn't just step on my tail. _

Vachir's laugh rang out and I felt the heat of a torch near my face. Vachir's bad breath was on my face. "Oh, did I step on the witty kitty's tail? Awe."

"I'm good!" Zeng exclaimed. "I've seen enough! I'm gonna tell Shifu he's got nothing to worry about."

"No he doesn't." Vachir said as he and Zeng left.

"Okay, I'll tell him that." Zeng promised. "Can we please go now?"

I chuckled in my head. Zeng was always the most scared of, well, pretty much everything. Then, I heard the very soft sound of something landing in front of me. I opened my eyes and glared at Vachir's back. I looked down and saw one of Zeng's feathers. I picked it up with my tail, one of the few parts of me that could move. I glared at the drawbridge that was closing.

It was time for my escape.

A/N: As you can guess, the next couple of chapters are Tai Lung's side of the story in the movie.


	10. Escape

Chapter Ten- Escape

As Zeng and Vachir ascended up to the entrance, I managed to get Zeng's feather into the lock. Using my tail to hit it around, I moved it here and there.

Then, I heard a small series of clicks.

I hit the feather on last time.

I got the result I wanted.

I felt the jade acupuncture needles move and come out of my back. Immediately, I felt my full stomach from the last meal I ate twenty years ago. I breathed deeply for the first time since my imprisonment. I unsheathed one set of claws. Growling, I unsheathed the other. The shell was released.

With a quick jerk of my now movable body, the shell was destroyed. Above me, a bell was rung. I heard Vachir yell, "To your battle stations! Go!" I growled, standing. The boulders attached to my wrists didn't stop me. I stood up, looked up at Vachir, and roared (A/N: Snow leopards don't really roar, but I don't think snarled would work.).

"Fire crossbows!" Vachir ordered.

"Fire!" one rhino at a crossbow said as his partner fired. I dodged the first four arrows and growled at the rhinos.

"Fire!" one commanded. The large arrow came hurdling toward me. But Destiny must've been having mercy on me, because I only moved a few inches for the arrow to pierce the shackle on my wrist, breaking it. I broke the other one off with my bare hand. My next objective: get to the top.

"Bring it up!" Vachir yelled. I looked to see the elevator moving. Then another rhino fired at me. I spun around and had the arrow bounce off my wrist. Then I jumped up and kicked it back towards the rhinos, breaking the crossbows. I noticed the other arrows and picked four of them off the ground. With a few good kicks, they impaled the wall near the elevator. I rolled my stiff neck, making it crack, before I used the fifth arrow to launch myself to the other arrows.

"Archers!" Vachir yelled. I stopped at the second to last arrow and looked up at the hundreds of red arrows coming at me. I jumped, flipping around the last arrow and launching me to the elevator. I grabbed on and hid as the arrows hit the elevator. I moved up the chain and grabbed the bottom of the platform it was connected to just as one rhino cut the chain with his axe. They chuckled, but I swung up and did the splits, kicking both rhinos to unconsciousness. I hit the lever and let out the chain, grabbing it as I jumped. I turned around and used the chain to swing myself up, where I grabbed the wall of the cliff and climbed up, where the Anvil of Heaven waited. They came at me with everything they had, but I dodged, kicked, and punched. One came at me and I punched him. He held up his shield, but I shattered the shield and launched him backwards, hitting the other guards on the way. I ran thru the doors to the next level. Two rhinos held the door closed, but I kicked it, crushing them. I caught two more as they came at me, spinning them around as I did a barrel roll in midair. One swung a mace at me, but I caught hit, elbowing him away. I hit three rhinos on the heads with the mace. One came out me, yelling. I smiled, sticking the mace in his mouth and giving him a good kick to the jaw. I rammed thru the rest of them and caught the one with the mace in his mouth, throwing him into the last one. I used my claws to scale the wall, landing on the last bridge. I looked up and saw Vachir (with Zeng being held loosely by his neck in his hand) and the rest of the Anvil.

Vachir growled.

I hissed.

Zeng squawked fearfully.

I got into my fighting stance. I was this close to getting out. I wasn't stopping. _I'll be there soon, Mei. _I thought.

"We're dead." Zeng said. "So very, very dead."

"Not yet we're not." Vachir laughed. "Now!" he yelled to a soldier. I watched as a rhino shot a flaming arrow to the ceiling. I looked up as an explosion rang out. I saw stalactites that had dynamite on them. I should've known. Oogway would've known I'd escape sooner or later. So this wasn't just my prison; it was my grave.

Not this time.

As the stalactites hit the bridges, destroying them, I ran forward, leaping off the last one, reaching for the edge. But I missed by centimeters. My claws scratched the edge, and I fell, landing on a falling stalactite. Vachir laughed and waved good-bye. I looked up and saw the last thing of dynamite.

I wasn't thru yet.

Not even close.

I ran up, bouncing off of stalactites and pieces of broken bridges. I kept going, faster and faster. I finally leaped off the last one, grabbing the stalactite that had the dynamite. I almost slipped, but I held on with my claws. I climbed up as the dynamite came close to blowing up. I grabbed it and dived down to Vachir and his remaining soldiers, who were backing up.

"Can we run now?" Zeng asked.

"Yes." Vachir whimpered.

Gotcha now.

I spun around, throwing the dynamite to the soldiers. The dynamite exploded, blasting them all out the broken doors. I landed on all fours and stood, walking forward. I saw that pretty much all of the Anvil of Heaven were dead. Then I saw Zeng. Miraculously, he had lived. My first thought was to kill him. But Zeng had always been good to me. He was even a bit of a friend. He might not think that now. But his death is not part of the plan.

So I reached forward and grabbed him by the throat. He gulped when he saw me. I bet he thought he was going to die. Instead, I sighed.

"I'm glad Shifu sent you." I said, smoothing out the feathers on his head. "I was beginning to think I had been forgotten. Fly back there and tell them the _real _Dragon Warrior is coming home." He nodded nervously, and I threw him into the sky. He started madly flying away. Behind me, Chor Gom Prison was being destroyed.

They said it was inescapable.

I guess I changed that.

With the prison and red lights from the explosions to my back, I started my journey to the Valley of Peace.

_Prepare yourself Shifu. _I thought.

A/N: The next three chapters will be Tai Lung's fight between The Five, Shifu, and Po. Almost done! Read and Review!


	11. Battle of the Furious Five

_Ok, due to the stupidity of my desktop computer, I couldn't update the next chapter. I couldn't even send it to my e-mail so I could update it here. Because I do not wish to wait until it's fixed, I'll rewrite the chapter here as best I can._

Chapter Eleven- Battle of the Furious Five

Finding my way to the Valley of Peace was too easy. I only stopped once, and that was to get food. I stopped by a small village and stole a bit of bread. I heard some villagers talking about how the Dragon Warrior had fallen out of the sky and he was nothing the world had ever seen before.

He wasn't the real Dragon Warrior.

I was.

And I was going to prove it.

I got to the Thread of Hope easily. I ran on all fours across the bridges. But as I rounded the corner to the last bridge, five people were waiting on the other side, at the entrance.

A tiger, a snake, a praying mantis, a monkey, and a crane.

The Furious Five.

Mei had told them about me on one of her visits. They were supposed to be the greatest warriors in all of China.

Time to show them who the best of the best was.

I snarled and ran across the bridge.

"Cut it!" Tigress ordered. The others did so, cutting the ropes that held up the bridge. Just as the bridge started to fall, I jumped, falling straight towards Tigress. I snarled as I fell. Tigress saw where I'd land and took action. With a "Hi-ya!" Tigress did a back flip, kicking me in the jaw. I flew backwards and saw the bridge still up. I grabbed on and flipped myself onto it. I saw Monkey, Mantis, Viper, and Crane holding the bridge ropes. Tigress landed on the bridge in a fighting stance. So now it was me and Tigress on a bridge being held by four warriors, with nothing but a fog-filled abyss below us. I stood on the rope handles and leaned on the bridge casually.

"Where's the Dragon Warrior?" I asked.

"How do you know you're not looking at her?" Tigress asked.

I laughed. Last I remembered, nobody said one of the Five became the Dragon Warrior. "You think I'm a fool?" I frowned. "I know you're not the Dragon Warrior." I looked at the others on the others side. "None of you!" I looked back to Tigress, walking on the handle like a tightrope. "I heard how he fell out of the sky on a ball of fire." I jumped back onto the bridge. "That he's a warrior. Unlike anything the world has ever seen!" Tigress growled.

"Po?" Monkey asked.

"So that is his name." I said. "Po. Finally! A worthy opponent! Our battle will be legendary!" Tigress obviously couldn't take it anymore, because she attacked me. I blocked and hit back and she grabbed me, trying to pull me over the side. I held onto the rope and Tigress grabbed the wooden planks of the bridge. I used the rope to launch myself into the clouds. When I came down, I planned to land a powerful punch. But Tigress grabbed the planks and flipped the bridge. So I hooked my foot between the planks and punched thru the wood. Tigress and I sparred like that until I grabbed her foot in mid-kick and pulled her thru the wood. Then I tried to throw her down into the abyss. But Tigress unsheathed her claws and dug them into my paw, pulling herself up back to the bridge. I managed to land a few good kicks to her before I kicked her up thru the bridge. I blasted thru after her, did a quick back flip, and kicked Tigress thru the bridge planks many yards away. I cut the rope handles away and twisted the ropes around so they wrapped around Tigress' throat. When I was right side up again, I noticed Viper on the ropes in front of me. Before I could blink, Viper lashed out at me, wrapping her around my neck. I saw her hiss menacingly at me. Then I noticed she had wrapped her tail around my fist and she was forcing me to hit myself. She made me hit myself before I almost fell off the bridge. I hooked my foot onto the planks and grabbed Viper by the throat as she tried to slither away.

"Monkey!" she cried. I pulled myself up and pinned the snake to the wood. I came close to giving her a good punch before I heard someone coming toward me. I looked up, only to have Monkey's foot collide with my face. I fell back, hitting the ropes of what was left of the bridge. I got up and started running on the ropes towards the Five. I saw Mantis holding the remaining ropes and Crane flying from the fog with Tigress.

"Mantis!" Tigress ordered. The tiny bug whipped the ropes, hitting me in mid-jump. "Now!" Tigress commanded. Together, Tigress, Crane, Viper, and Monkey all came running to me. I balanced myself on the ropes and prepared myself. But Monkey came at me, kicking me. When I had regained my balance, he helped Viper slither at me, whipping me. I leaped to Crane, but the bird grabbed a bridge rope, kicked me, and used the rope to bind me. By leaping off of Crane's back, Tigress hit me with both of her claws, laying down the final blow of the battle. Tigress cut the last rope of the bridge. As Tigress, Monkey, Viper, and Crane fell one way, I fell the other, yelling. I hit the other side hard.

You'd think I was defeated.

You have no idea how wrong you would be.

I used my claws to cut the ropes around me. I grabbed the loose rope and ran fast around the mountain. When I completed a full U-turn, I used the rope to launch myself into the air. I landed on all fours behind the Furious Five. They whipped around to face me, gasping. I stood, smiling.

"Shifu taught you well." I commented. I lunged, paralyzing Monkey with a nerve attack before he could think about moving. The others stared at me in horror. "But he didn't teach you everything." I lunged three more times, paralyzing Tigress, Viper, and Mantis. But Crane still had a little energy left, because he fought back. He wasn't strong enough, because I managed to overpower him. At first, I thought about killing him and the Five.

But that wasn't part of the plan.

My main plan was to kill Shifu and Oogway.

"Gather your friends and go back to the palace." I ordered. "And you make sure Shifu knows who did this." Crane nodded fearfully, gathering his friends in his legs and flying off. When I couldn't see him anymore, I continued to the Jade Palace.

You may think I was being merciful.

Maybe I was.

Maybe I wasn't.

I don't think I knew at the time.

I was just going with the plan.

A/N: Up next is Tai Lung's battle with Shifu. Read and Review!


	12. Battle Between Father and Son

_Sorry I'm being slow. I'm almost done!_

Chapter Twelve- Battle Between Father and Son

"Wow." Tai Lung said when Shifu was done reading. "The Furious Five sound tough."

"And yet somehow, you beat them." Shifu said.

"The book told us how." Tai Lung replied.

"I know." Shifu said. "It's just that this book tells about your life. When the Five returned to me defeated, I had wondered how you had beaten them." Shifu sighed. "I didn't realize how until you fought me."

"What did I do?" Tai Lung asked nervously.

"I can't explain." Shifu said. "We have to read on to know."

*****

After Crane had disappeared, I ran to the Jade Palace. I avoided the trail of villagers leaving the valley. Shifu and Oogway must've had them evacuated to protect them.

Typical.

A storm was brewing overhead as I ran up the palace steps, thru the doors, and up to the Sacred Hall of Warriors. I thought I'd grab the Dragon Scroll, get Mei, and leave.

But Shifu was waiting for me on the steps near the top. He closed his eyes as the lightning flashed. When he opened his eyes, I had stopped in front of him. Lightning flashed again before I spoke.

"I have come home, Master." I said coolly.

"This is no longer your home." Shifu told me. "And I am no longer your master." I wasn't surprised to notice that Shifu's heart had hardened while I was in prison.

"Oh yes." I said. "You have a new favorite. So where is this..._Po_?" I chuckled. "Did I scare him off?"

"This battle is between you and me." Shifu growled.

"So." I said, turning my back to him. "That is how it's going to be."

"_That _is how it _must _be." Shifu replied, getting into a fighting stance. I growled at him. If he wanted to play dirty, fine.

I leaped up into the air. As I came down, I planned to land a powerful drop kick on Shifu. But he flipped away to the top of the stairs. I lifted a large chunk of the stairs and did a backwards roundhouse kick, launching it towards the small master. I ran after the chunk, knowing what would happen. Sure enough, Shifu managed to break the rock. I jumped thru the pieces, landing a hard punch to Shifu's face. Shifu went flying thru the doors of the Sacred Hall of Warriors. I landed on all fours before I stood up to face him. Shifu was up on his feet, standing ready.

"I rotted in jail for _twenty years_!" I yelled, walking forward. "Because of _your _weakness!"

"Obeying your master is not weakness!" Shifu countered.

"You knew _I _was the Dragon Warrior!" I said. "You _always _knew. But when Oogway said otherwise, what did you do?" I remembered the day Shifu presented me to Oogway, and how the old tortoise rejected me. "_What did you do?!_" What had he done? Shifu had just turned away from me.

Shifu didn't answer me, so I answered for him.

"Nothing!"

"You were not meant to be the Dragon Warrior!" Shifu told me. "That was not my fault!"

"Not your fault?" I repeated, pointing an accusing finger at him. I advanced forward, and Shifu backed up. "Who filled my head with dreams?" I kicked Master Flying Rhino's armor over, scattering the pieces everywhere. Shifu did a back flip to dodge the pieces.

"Stop." He said.

But I didn't.

"Who drove me to train until my bones cracked?" I grabbed the golden shield and threw it like a disc at Shifu, who swiftly moved away to avoid it. The shield impaled the pillar instead. "Who denied me my destiny?" I grabbed an entire rack of weapons and flung them all at once towards Shifu. But I underestimated his skill. Or maybe I was just mad. He deflected every weapon. I kicked up a broadsword that had fallen with my foot and sent it spinning towards Shifu. He pawed it around his body and stabbed it deep into the floor.

"It was never my decision to make!" Shifu shouted. I snarled and leaped over to my right, ready to grab the next weapon I saw. When I saw the weapon, I stood up straight.

It was Oogway's staff.

It was on a shrine.

But that means……

I don't know why I wasn't sorry Oogway was dead. Either I was driven mad with power, or I was too evil to care.

But I picked up the staff and, with a smirk on my face, held it out to Shifu.

"It is now."

I half expected him to take the staff. Instead, he attacked me. I blocked his attack and gave him a good kick. He twirled up above my head and I spun around, ready to face him as he jumped up. I took my chance and thrust the staff forward, catching Shifu by the neck and slamming him to the floor.

"Give me the scroll!" I said thru gritted teeth.

"I would rather die!" Shifu hissed. I snarled. _So be it. _I pressed down on the staff. But I felt the resistance of Shifu pushing back. Knowing him, he didn't give up easily. But neither did I. Yet our battle for control only ended up with the ancient limb snapping in half and cluttering away. Shifu sat up and stared at it. I leaped forward, landing a sucker kick at Shifu's face. He managed to move around so that when we hit the wall on the other side, he was landing in a crouching position as my foot pressed against his head. He pushed me away, and he leaped to the pillars. I followed as we jumped from pillar to pillar, me always right on Shifu's tail. When Shifu jumped up to the roof, I lunged with all my strength, giving Shifu a hard punch that sent us thru the roof and into the stormy sky. We fought in mid air for a minute before Shifu grabbed my wrist in mid-punch, twisting it around my body and landing on my back. When I looked back at him, he gave me a kick. I looked down and saw us rapidly falling towards the roof of the palace. I growled, elbowing Shifu twice before he let go of me. I twisted around, grabbed Shifu's neck, and forced him down in front of me. We fell face to face as Shifu's head broke thru the wood of the roof, and we were back in the Sacred Hall of Warriors. I let Shifu go and gave him a good mid-air kick. We went flying in two different directions. Shifu hit one pillar hard before falling to the floor. I slammed against another and slid down, knocking over the Brazier of Eternal Blue Flame. I ran thru it, picking it up in my paws. I lunged at Shifu, snarling. He got up quickly, feebly blocking my hard blows.

"All I ever did I did to make you proud!" I shouted as I punched. "Tell me how _proud _you are Shifu!"

Funny, how I said that, yet I kept punching him, not giving him a chance.

"Tell me!" I yelled.

I punched him twice across his face, twice in his sides.

"TELL ME!" I drew both claws back and launched them forward, hitting Shifu with both claws. In a burst of sparks, Shifu was thrown backwards, bouncing and rolling until he hit the small steps around the Moon Pool. He gasped, breathing deeply. With a flick of my wrist, I extinguished the flames in my hands.

This was the end now. I walked forward, prepared to kill. I spied the Golden Spear, thinking I could use it. But the spear burned those unworthy. And I wasn't worthy, not by a long shot. So I'd just have to kill Shifu with my bare hands.

But Shifu spoke.

"I have…I have always been proud of you." He said, struggling to prop himself up on his arms. "From the first moment I've been…..proud of you."

I froze in my tracks.

Was I hearing correctly?

"And it was my pride…..that blinded me." Shifu continued. "I loved you too much to see what you were becoming." He averted his gaze from the floor to me. "What I…..was turning you into. I'm s-" Shifu paused briefly. "I'm sorry."

Once my brain had registered what I had just heard, all my anger left me.

He wasn't lying. I could see in his eyes he wasn't lying to me.

I wanted to forgive him. I really did. I wanted to be the one to apologize and have him forgive me. I wanted to ask him about Mei, Destiny, and Daiyu the dragon.

But how could I?

What was supposed to happen anyway?

The villagers would love and adore me as a great warrior? I had destroyed their home. The Five would forget about the bridge fight? I had almost strangled Tigress to death. Would I finally have that bloody Dragon Scroll in my hands? I…

The Dragon Scroll.

_My _Dragon Scroll.

My anger immediately returned. That scroll was _mine_! One pathetic, feeble apology was not going to get me the scroll. If Shifu wasn't going to willingly hand it over, then maybe he needs to be forced to.

Or pay with his life.

I snarled and lunged at Shifu. I slammed my paw on his throat, grabbing his neck in an iron death grip.

"I don't want your apology." I growled as he tried to pull away. I lifted him high and shook him like a rat that came out of the sewer. "I want my scroll!" As Shifu struggled to pull away so he could breathe, I noticed the dragon on the ceiling that held the Dragon Scroll.

No, it _used _to hold the Dragon Scroll.

"What?" I gaped as I stared at the dragon's empty mouth.

"_Where is it?!_" I yelled as I slammed Shifu's body to the stairs, making a small crater in them.

Shifu gasped, weak and suffering. "Dragon Warrior…has taken scroll halfway across China by now." He choked out as I tightened my grip. He coughed. "You will _never _see that scroll Tai Lung." At that point, my anger had reached its highest point. I unsheathed my claws.

"Never!" Shifu gasped. I tightened my grip until I couldn't tighten it anymore. Shifu gasped, trying to breathe. "Never….."

I swung my claws down.

I slit his throat.

I spilled his blood on the floor.

*****

"What?!" Tai Lung exclaimed.

"Well, that was darker than I thought." Shifu admitted.

"But, if I killed you, does that mean you're a ghost right now?" Tai Lung asked.

"Well, you didn't really kill me, so no, I'm not a ghost." Shifu told the cub.

"Then what happened?" Tai asked. Shifu smiled and Tai rolled his eyes. "Read on."

*****

I wanted to do all those things.

But something stopped me.

I felt a small set of paws grab my claws, pulling them back with all their strength.

When I looked at my claws to see who it was, I saw a familiar king cheetah wearing jeans and a jade green T-shirt.

"Destiny?" I asked. Destiny had tears flowing down her cheeks. "What's wrong?"

"Tai Lung, I can't sit back and watch you become a murderer!" Destiny cried. "Look at you! You're not a killer. I know that! And here you are, killing your own father!" I looked back down at Shifu. He was weak and dying. His breath was only tiny gasps for air. A few more seconds, and he'll be dead.

But then, something else happened.

A voice behind me yelled, "HEY!"

_I'm thinking that whenever Shifu and cub Tai Lung are talking, I'm just going to shorten Tai Lung's name to Tai. Read and Review!_


	13. Battle Between Me and the Fat Guy

Chapter Thirteen- Battle Between Me and the Fat Guy

Shifu stopped reading to look at Tai. The snow leopard cub was trembling.

"Did I really do that?" he asked.

"Hey, at least I didn't die." Shifu said.

"But you almost did." Tai said. "If Destiny hadn't come, you wouldn't be here. And who was the person that yelled?"

"Why do you ask me that when you know what I'm going to say?" Shifu asked. He and Tai laughed, and Shifu continued.

*****

I turned around and looked at the broken doors. Standing there was a giant panda, trying to catch his breath. He pointed a thumb behind him.

"Stairs." He said, sighing. I gave him a weird look.

"_Who _are _you_?" I demanded.

"Buddy." He said, still panting. "I….am the Dragon Warrior." He took a stance, but leaned on his knees to catch his breath again. I growled, but then I laughed.

"_You_?" I laughed, standing up. I took one look at Shifu barely alive in my hand before I tossed him aside. He landed hard on the dais. "Him?" I looked down to him. "He's a panda." In that brief moment when I looked down at Shifu, I saw his eyes just barely open, and Destiny was kneeling beside him. I didn't know if the panda could see her, but I'm positive he couldn't.

He wasn't worthy to.

I turned back to the panda. "You're a panda. What are you going to do big guy? Sit on me?" I chuckled.

"Don't tempt me." The panda said. He laughed. "No. I'm going to use…this." He pulled out the Dragon Scroll and laughed triumphantly. I glared at him. "You want it? Come get it."

Not a second after he said that, I sprinted forward and gave him a good punch to the face. He went flying backwards into a pillar. But I was only focused on the scroll. I caught it in my hand.

"Finally!" I said, about to open it. But before I could, the panda slammed into me, launching me pack into the room and into a pillar. I shook my head as a little debris fell on my head. I stared at him. He glanced down at his hands, and then chuckled. He took a kung fu stance, taunting me. I got mad, running on all fours at him. When I did that, he must've realized how much trouble he was in, because he turned around to run. But I slammed into him. Together, we went flying. He managed to grab the scroll and hold onto it. I snarled. He just chuckled. I kneed him in the gut, and the panda bounced off a roof and onto the tree outside the place gates, making it bend so much he was on the ground. I leaped toward him, ready to grab the scroll. But he stupid oaf moved off the branches of the tree, making it swing back. I stared at it as the branches hit me back. I skidded off the roof and lunged at the panda, hitting him down the stairs. He bounced down, and I followed.

"That scroll is mine!" I shouted, grabbing it and kicking the panda in the face. We both held onto the scroll as we bounced down the stairs. When we were in the air, I would hit him, but wherever I hit, he bounces back. And every time we landed on the stairs, somehow I was always on the bottom. The last time we hit the stairs, his stupid, fat butt sat right on my face.

I'd rather not talk about it.

We hit the gate at the bottom, and I hit him away. I landed on a roof of a house and saw the scroll bouncing off the roof of another. I leaped over to grab it, but I saw a noodle wrap around it, and I saw the panda pull it towards him. But the scroll bounced off his head. So I ran forward to grab it jumping up towards it. But the panda grabbed my legs and pulled me down onto a wheelbarrow. The force launched the panda after the scroll. He laughed, obviously enjoying it. I stared at him.

"You've got to be kidding me." I groaned. I ran up onto the roofs, determined to grab the scroll. I saw the panda on two long pieces of bamboo, like large stilts. I saw the Dragon Scroll a few yards away. I jumped down, landing right in front of it. I reached for it. But before I could touch it, a wok hit me right in the face. I pulled it off, only to see a bunch of other woks in front of me. The panda was there too. He started using the bamboo stilts he was on to move the woks around at an alarming speed. I stared hopelessly at the woks. I looked back up at the panda, who was smirking.

"Lightening!" he said. "Woo!" I growled, then swiped my leg at the woks, scattering them. I saw the Dragon Scroll and lunged for it. But the stupid panda used the stilts to move my hands away until he moved them quickly, trying to block my hand. I put two hands between the stilts and moved them. I grabbed the scroll, chuckling.

And then, of course, I have to have a giant, black and white blob land on top of me, making the scroll roll away.

I kicked the panda off, running after the scroll. I chased it for a minute until I heard the panda's yell behind me. I looked, and I saw him riding a cart of fireworks. And he had lighted all of them! My eyes widened as the panda hit me, tossing me in the air. When I landed, I rolled backwards until I skidded to a halt. I looked up and saw the Dragon Scroll in the mouth of a stone dragon high on a house. I snarled, running towards it. But I saw the panda go up to it, flipping around and using kung fu skills I didn't know he possessed.

"The scroll has given him power!" I realized. "No!" I ran forward, landing a powerful kick on the weakest point to the house. A shockwave sent the scroll flying. The house started the crumble and I climbed up to the scroll. But the panda was scrambling after it as the scroll was thrown into the air. The tiles he was running on slipped off, hitting me in the jaw. I saw him grab the scroll.

But I wasn't about to quit.

I launched myself off a piece of the house and landed a hard downward kick to the panda, slamming him to the ground. I fell after him, yelling. I landed probably the hardest punch I've ever laid on the panda's body, creating a large dust cloud. When the dust had cleared, the panda and I were in a large crater. The panda was lying on the ground, breathing hard. I noticed the Dragon Scroll and walked over to it. The panda weakly reached for it, but when I picked it up, he fell again.

"Finally." I said. "Oh yes." I chuckled. This was what I've been waiting for all my life. I would finally have the secret to limitless power. I would find Mei and we'd run away together.

My plan was finally falling into place.

"The power of the Dragon Scroll….is…." I took the scroll out and opened it wide. "Mine!" I stared at the golden surface. Written on the scroll was….was….

I turned the scroll one way, then the other, and then closed it and reopened it once more.

"It's nothing!" I cried hopelessly.

*****

"Nothing?!" Tai exclaimed. "I went thru all that just to have _nothing_?"

"Apparently so." Shifu said.

"But, it doesn't make sense." Tai said. "The scroll was supposed to give me limitless power."

"I'm not sure there's a single thing in the world that can do that." Shifu said. He went on.

*****

I looked at the panda as he got up.

"It's ok." He groaned. "I didn't get it the first time either." He coughed.

"What?" I asked.

The panda stood up. "There is no secret ingredient." I looked down at the scroll one last time before throwing it to the ground. He glanced down at his reflection. "It's just you." He smiled.

But did I understand?

Of course not.

Was I madder than ever before in my life?

Absolutely.

Snarling, I lunged, landing a nerve attack to the stupid panda who took away my power. He fell to the ground. I thought he was finished.

But then he started laughing. I stared at him, and then tried again.

"Stop it!" he said, laughing. "I'm gonna pee!" I tried again and again, but for some reason, I couldn't land the nerve attack on him. "Don't!" he kept saying as I tried. "Don't." He laughed, but I was just angrier. I drew both of my claws back and launched them forward like when I did it to Shifu.

This time, the panda stopped laughing. But the effect of my punch was like punching the Adversary in the wrong place. The panda whipped back at me, hitting me with both paws. I went flying thru the top of an archway. I ran back, snarling. I tried to punch him, but he managed to block them and my kick. Then, he stepped on my foot. I jumped back, holding it. The panda laughed before he and I continued. He managed to hit me once before I jumped up for a backwards roundhouse kick. The panda caught my foot and threw me backwards. I fell to the ground. I felt the panda's body bounce off of mine, and I was pulled up into the air by my tail. I looked down at the panda right before his and my heads collided. I tried to fight back, but the panda had my tail held tightly. He wrapped it around my leg when I tried to kick and pulled. I did a barrel roll and kicked again. The panda used my tail to block my kick and chop. Then I lunged, thinking I could just bite him.

Guess what?

The panda held up my tail.

And I bit that instead.

With a little, kitten-like meow, I felt pain shoot up my tail. I jumped back. The panda pulled me back and used his stupid fat butt to bounce me away. I fell back, rolling until I slammed into a house.

You'd think a guy would give up.

I got up and ran as fast as I could to the panda, yelling. When I was a few feet away, I jumped at him.

You know what he did?

He used his stupid, fat stomach to ricochet me so high into the sky that I went past the clouds. For a moment, I was in midair. I saw Destiny in front of me.

"I'm gonna die, aren't I?" I asked.

"Not today." She said.

Before I could ask her what she meant, I started to fall back down. I yelled as I rapidly fell to the ground and slammed into the dirt. When I looked up, I saw I was in a hole shaped like my body. I wearily climbed out.

"You…can't defeat me." I panted to the panda. "You…you're just a big…fat…panda!" I lunged, but he grabbed my finger. I did nothing to pull away; I was too tired.

"I'm not a big fat panda." The panda said. "I'm _the _big fat panda." He smirked as he raised his pinkie.

I knew that move all too well.

"The Wuxi Finger Hold?" I gasped.

"Oh you know this hold?" he taunted.

"You're bluffing." I said. "You're bluffing! Shifu didn't teach you that!"

"Nope." The panda told me. I smiled hopefully. "I figured it out." I stared with horror at his hand. "Skadoosh." He flexed his pinky, and I winced, bracing myself.

But nothing happened.

I looked up at the panda and saw him completely frozen, like a statue. He was still smirking. I tried to pull away from him, but I couldn't; his grip was strong.

"Surprised?" a voice asked. I turned to my left and saw Destiny.

"What's happening?" I asked.

"Tai Lung, how did the Wuxi Finger Hold come to be?" Destiny said.

"Uh, it was developed by Master Wuxi in the Third Dynasty." I said. I had heard the legend a thousand times.

"That's not the full legend." Destiny said. I stared at her. "You see, Master Wuxi was very skilled. But bandits kept attacking his village. So he prayed to the Immortals that he had enough power to scare them away. The Immortals obliged, on one condition: I was the one who decided what would happen when the hold was performed. Some people fell over dead. Some lived with minor wounds."

"So I guess I'm going to die now." I said.

I deserved it. I finally realized what I had done. I had hurt so many people. Just for a stupid, pathetic, _blank_, scroll.

"No." Destiny said. I looked at her in amazement.

"But, I've committed so many sins." I said.

"Everyone deserves a second chance." Destiny said. "In this case, I believe it must start with you and Shifu." She was right. I needed to be a better warrior.

Shifu needed to be a better father.

"So what happens now?" I asked.

"You'll see." Destiny said. With a snap of her fingers, I started to shrink. Immediately, I forgot a lot of my life. My years in Chor Gom Prison. Attacking the Five and Shifu. Even my fight with the panda. Then, I was ten years old.

Time resumed, and the panda seemed confused at first. Then, he looked down and saw me.

"Tai Lung?" he asked. He came to me.

But I was scared. I didn't know the panda anymore.

"Stay away from me!" I yelled, running away. But he followed me into the restaurant nearby. I didn't realize it was the same one I had gone into when I met Mr. Ping. I got cornered, and the panda came to me slowly. But I threw an apron and a wok at his head and slipped past him, sprinting up to the Jade Palace. I ran all the way to the Sacred Hall of Warriors.

Remember now that I didn't remember anything unless it was before I was ten.

So don't be surprised when I was horrified to see Shifu wounded on the dais around the Moon Pool.

"Shifu!" I cried as I ran to his side. "Baba?" I could tell just by looking at him that he wasn't breathing.

I didn't need to check for a pulse to know he was dead.

I knelt beside him, crying until I felt a paw on my shoulder. I looked up to see Destiny. For some reason, I remembered her.

"Destiny?" I sniffed. "Shifu's dead."

"I know little one." She said. "But I can bring him back."

"You will?" I said hopefully.

"Yes." She said. "But you must come with me afterwards."

"I'll do anything." I said. Destiny smiled and waved her hand. Immediately, Shifu was breathing again. Destiny held out her paw, and I took it.

In the blink of an eye, we were in a strange, destroyed prison. Destiny led me to an empty room.

"This will be your home for a while." She told me. "You must summon Shifu here so you can talk."

"About what?" I asked. Destiny held up a book. On the cover, it said, _Memoirs of a Warrior_. "How do I summon Shifu?"

"I will teach you to communicate with him thru your dreams." Destiny promised.

And she did. It took a week to practice and get it right. But when I got it, I contacted Shifu. Destiny promised me he would come in a few days. We'd read the book and everything will be made right again.

And it happened. Shifu and I read the book. He saved my life twice, and I saved his. By the time we finish this, we'll have retied our bonds between father and son.

When we finish, we will both have had our second chance.

A/N: One more chapter! Read and Review!


	14. Happy Endings

Chapter Fourteen- Happy Endings

Shifu sighed as he set the book down.

"Wow." Tai said. "What a life I had."

"Indeed." Shifu muttered.

"But who was that panda?" Tai asked. "And how in the name of high Heaven's did he learn the Wuxi Finger Hold?"

"That panda was the Dragon Warrior." Shifu said. "His name is Po. And I guess he must've tried to copy me the last time I threatened to use it on him."

"_You _threatened to use the Wuxi Finger Hold on him?" Tai asked incredulously. "Why?"

"Well, I didn't think he could be the Dragon Warrior, so I tried to get rid of him." Shifu admitted.

"Wow." Tai laughed. "You wouldn't have done it though." Shifu smiled. "Would you?" Tai asked nervously. He and Shifu laughed. Tai smiled.

"Baba?" he asked timidly. Shifu smiled at the cub who hadn't called him "Baba" until now. "Will I be able to live in the Jade Palace again? I want to go home." Shifu thought about it. Viper, Monkey, Mantis, and Crane had never seen Tai Lung as a cub. But Tigress and Po have. They would recognize Tai right away and take him as an enemy.

If Shifu stood up for the snow leopard cub, what would they think?

Shifu stared at the book when he remembered something.

"Wait a minute." He frowned. "The book says that you and Destiny _found _this book."

"Yeah, so what?" Tai asked.

"Well you wrote it didn't you?" Shifu chuckled.

"Uh, no, I didn't." Tai said.

"What?" Shifu stared at the cub. "If you didn't write this, who did?"

"I did."

Shifu and Tai whipped around and saw Destiny standing behind them. She was smiling so broadly that she was showing her sharp teeth.

"_You _wrote this?" Shifu asked. "Why?"

"You know why Shifu." Destiny said. "You and Tai Lung both needed a second chance. So I gave it to you."

"So I guess we did a good job, huh?" Tai said.

"Indeed you have." Destiny agreed.

"So now what?" Shifu asked.

"The decision is yours." Destiny said. "You've used your second chance, so now you must decide what to do." Tai stared at Shifu.

"I can't go home." He said.

"What makes you say that?" Shifu asked.

"Something's happened there." Tai said sadly. "Something that could end up badly for me." Shifu sighed.

"Shifu, why are you so worried?" Destiny said.

"I don't want to risk my students attacking him." Shifu said. "He could be killed."

"You do have a good reason to be worried." Destiny agreed. "So I came up with another plan."

"I'm listening." Shifu said cautiously. Tai's ears perked up.

"I made Tai Lung young, I can make him older." Destiny said. "I can also revive Mei. The two of them can go off and live somewhere nobody would look. They'll be safe there."

"My book did say that I wanted to runaway with Mei." Tai said.

"So you both have a choice: little Tai Lung goes back to the palace, or I can make Tai Lung older, revive Mei, and take them someplace safe." Shifu stared at Tai, who was deep in thought.

"Tai Lung, what do _you _want." Shifu asked. He was ready to accept Tai's decision, even if it meant he might never see him again. The cub stared at Shifu.

"I want to be with Mei." Tai said. "I can't go to the Palace." Shifu smiled.

"Well, we'd best get going then." Destiny said. "I've already gotten a place ready for you." Tai gave Shifu one last sad look before hugging him. Shifu did the same, feeling the same way he did when he had first found the little cub. Tai smiled and walked to Destiny. The king cheetah smiled to Shifu.

"By the way, I'll be sending you home with your belongings." She said. Tai took her hand, but then his face lit up and he ran off into his room. When he came back out, he had his Yang symbol necklace.

"I almost forgot this." Tai said. "I found it around my neck while I was here."

"Ah yes." Destiny said. "I'm sure Mei will like to see that." Tai smiled and grabbed Destiny's hand again. He waved good-bye to Shifu before there was a bright flash of light. Shifu covered his eyes. When the light died, he was sitting on his bed with the memoir in his hands. The light of sunset was streaming thru his window. He stuffed the book under his pillow and walked around the palace until he found his students laughing and talking in the kitchen. He smiled and knocked on the open door. All his students turned and smiled.

"Evening Master!" Monkey said.

"Everything alright?" Po asked. Shifu remembered how he had sent Zeng.

"Yes, everything's fine." Shifu assured.

"What was happening?" Tigress asked.

"Uh, there was a village being attacked by some crocodile bandits." Shifu lied. "Nothing big."

"Well, as long as you didn't need us." Viper said.

"A few bruises, but I'm fine." Shifu lied again. Turns out his tail was still a bit frozen from the avalanche and the cold mountains. "How was everything here?"

"Fine." Crane shrugged. "We didn't do much besides train."

"Well, make sure you get your rest, because it'll be more tomorrow." Shifu said. He turned and left, but stopped when he heard Mantis' voice.

"Come on Po!" he said. "Are you serious?" Shifu leaned against the wall and listened.

"Guys, I'm serious!" Po was saying. "In every single legend and myth I've ever read about heroes and villains, the good guy wins and the bad guy never does."

"He's got a point." Monkey said. "Most of the time, the hero kills the villain."

"What about that story of that evil tiger emperor?" Tigress asked. "He killed the hero before the hero could kill him."

"But then the hero's friend killed the emperor." Viper said.

"Do you guys think that there will ever be a time when the bad guy gets a happy ending?" Po asked. "It seems fair that they should get a second chance."

"So you think that Tai Lung should be revived and try and make him good?" Monkey asked. Everyone laughed.

"Good point." Po said. "I guess bad guys are so evil that they can't have happy endings."

Shifu smiled and walked off to his room. His students didn't know how wrong they were. Tai Lung had been changed from an evil warrior to a happy man with a good home and a lovely woman. Tai Lung had a second chance at being a son and a warrior. Shifu had a second chance at being a master and a father.

And in the end, Tai Lung, the most evil warrior in all of China, had gotten his happy ending.

_*ONE MONTH LATER*_

"Shifu, you have a letter." Po said, tossing a scroll to his master at breakfast one morning. Shifu caught it and read the seal. There was no name, just a small note.

_Do not open until you are alone._

Shifu was a bit skeptical, but waited until all his students had left for training before going to the Sacred Peach Tree to read the letter. Shifu opened the scroll and looked at the bottom…..where Tai Lung, Mei, Daiyu, and someone named Kiki had signed their names. Shifu smiled and read the letter from his son and daughter-in-law.

_Dear Shifu,_

_You'll be happy to know that Mei and I have settled into our new house. It's very nice. I wish you could see it, for words could not describe it. Destiny has really outdone herself this time. We live on a farm with nice soil, a small forest, and a beautiful, small river with clear waters. Daiyu's even here, helping us with farming. You remember the black dragon, don't you? We live about five miles from a small village. The best part about it is that they never heard of me destroying the Valley of Peace, so Mei, Daiyu, and I were welcome. We sell some of the food we plant to make money._

_I'm sorry to say that when Mei and I visited the doctor, we found out that she couldn't have children. However, we did find an orphanage nearby._

_Here's the best news of all: Mei and I have a child. She's a little, beautiful, cheetah girl, about five years old. I wish you could see her; she's a lot like you. Her name is Kiki._

_I miss you, Baba. I wish you could come and visit sometime. Maybe you can, when you have the time. I've told Kiki all about you. Mei and Daiyu miss you as well. Perhaps you can visit us soon. Kiki would love to meet you._

_Please write back to me. I sent this by a messenger eagle Destiny gave me. _

_Hope you are well._

_Tai Lung, Mei, Kiki, and Daiyu_

Shifu smiled broadly and looked up, seeing a golden eagle Tai Lung was talking about. Shifu ran to his room, the eagle following. Shifu took out a blank scroll and some ink and wrote back.

_Tai Lung,_

_I'm very happy to hear you are well. I hope life is going well. I would love to come and see your home. And I can't wait to meet little Kiki. I miss you too. Write back as much as possible. I'll see what I can do about visiting._

_Hope you are well._

_Shifu_

Shifu rolled up the scroll and handed it to the eagle, who grabbed it in her talons and flew off. Shifu smiled. He _would _see Tai Lung, Mei, and Daiyu again. The small master couldn't wait to meet their little cub.

But, even with how happy he was, Shifu sensed a dark force rising.

A/N: One review suggested that I make a sequel, so I will. If you guys have any ideas, review and tell me! Read and Review!


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